Quite a few years back, a very good friend of mine was packing up a really good chawan he had recently sold. He had it set on strips of bubble wrap and as he reached for one, the bowl tumbled to the ground and shattered. The loss of any great pot is a tragedy in my eyes and a financial loss to the dealer as well.
Recently, I was moving things around on a storage shelf and out of the corner of my eye I caught a falling shadow. A teabowl, I had made, fell and broke against the cement floor. I had been saving the bowl for a show and my action had an equal reaction. What sprung to mind was a wry “psuedo-haiku” I had sent to my friend Dan those few years back, as a means of consoling him;
“A Fine chawan,
What is Zen?
100 Pieces”
For years I have been trying to add an abundance of hydrogen molecules to my glazes to make them lighter than air, but to no avail. It is probably the distraction of my work to turn lead into gold that has impeded my progress. Considering gravity is a law we must all contend with, doesn’t humor makes it just a bit easier to live with?
Recently, I was moving things around on a storage shelf and out of the corner of my eye I caught a falling shadow. A teabowl, I had made, fell and broke against the cement floor. I had been saving the bowl for a show and my action had an equal reaction. What sprung to mind was a wry “psuedo-haiku” I had sent to my friend Dan those few years back, as a means of consoling him;
“A Fine chawan,
What is Zen?
100 Pieces”
For years I have been trying to add an abundance of hydrogen molecules to my glazes to make them lighter than air, but to no avail. It is probably the distraction of my work to turn lead into gold that has impeded my progress. Considering gravity is a law we must all contend with, doesn’t humor makes it just a bit easier to live with?
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