NOW CLOSED :: Anywhere The Wind Will — A Giveaway

Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts in the comment space on this giveaway post.  I loved every word you typed out.  Out of 158 original comments I’ve randomly generated comment #43.  Congratulations to Kim!Screen Shot 2014-09-18 at 10.44.27 AM

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We went out just as the wind began to rise.  We made our way to the top and rambled, in no clear direction, through the sagebrush; radiant in the dusk and fragrant in the damp cool.  There was no hour of golden gloaming tonight, no heat of a setting sun in tall grass, winking over the edge of the mountains and projecting pink on the cloud bellies in the East.  All was muted, hushed, grey and waiting for the grip of the storm.  I heard the roots of the cheat grass wend deeper underground, gaining a better grip on duff and stone, preparing for siege under the blaring cannons of the rain.

This summer, on numerous occasions, I have been high enough on the mountain to see the top soil of the Snake River Plain rise up in furrows beneath the blades of plough winds.  Tonight I watched the billowing grime swing up into the valley, a brown mist eating into clear air.  I pushed the hair from my eyes, felt the first raindrop on my cheek, turned on my heel, called in the dogs and foot by steady foot I raced the storm home.  The wind grew in might.  I wondered to myself, if this air with all its invisible power could pick me up, where would it take me, where would it finally set me down?

As I walked, I looked up through the strands of blond hair flying at impossible angles about my face, I felt my shirt whipping at my back and arms, watched the sage quiver madly and squinted against the force of the storm.  I saw the wind do its heavy lifting.  I watched it hold aloft the ancient skins of a thousand stones, the grit of the rivers run dry, spruce dust, sage pollen, lost birds, the rain.

What if!  What if it could lift me skyward, toss me heavily heavenward, rumple my hair, tear me in two and two again only to whimsically deposit me here and there across our world?  Where might I end up and would I belong there, fitting into new life and land with patience and grace, ready to work and serve to the same degree as a grain of topsoil that lands quietly at the root of a wildflower?

The rain came on then and I began to run, sheltering my camera beneath my shirt, shouting in surprise at the brute force of the raindrops; the sky broke open and it poured.  I ran like that, all the way down the mountain, all the way home, haphazard and wild, as free and fated as anything carried by the wind and once deposited on the front porch, out of reach from the storm, I realized I could be grain of sand, feather of bird, drop of rain, or pellet of pollen lifted up and set aside by the breeze — I could be any of those things — and like those tiny pieces of life that find their way skyward and then earthward once more, I will always end up exactly where I am meant to be.

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I have the great pleasure of being published in the first volume of Bella Grace this summer.  You can find not one, but two pieces of my writing in this magazine, complete with images.  I’ve been given a copy of the magazine (which is more book-like than magazine-like, to be honest  — truly lovely) to give away here.  If you would like to enter your name in the drawing for it please leave a comment on this post for me.  If you are shy, just say hi!  If you like, tell me about where the winds of life have taken you, how you made the most of it or how you celebrated, how you WISH you might have made the most of it, how it transformed you or how it shifted your life perspectives.  I would love so much to hear from you and wish, to the moon and back, I had one thousand copies of this magazine to give away.

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This post of mine is part of a blog hop that includes most of the contributors to the first volume of Bella Grace, read what they have to say about life (and the exquisite beauty therein) and besides being inspired, you’ll find many more chances to enter your names in drawings for other copies of Bella Grace.

Thank you all, as always, for being here.

You make my world go round.

X

:::Post Scriptus:::

Please pardon any delays on comment moderation — I’ll be away from my computer for a few days.

GIVEAWAY CLOSURE: September 15

Comments

  1. I love the imagery, Jillian!!
    The winds here in Southwestern Virginia blew me all the way out to a small farmhouse in the country where I live with my faithful friend, Willow the dog. It blows and blows and sends her skittering in to the corner where she hides and waits for the wind to slow down. But, often it continues and whips itself in to a frenzy of volume. The windows breathe with plastic sheeting over them in the winter it blows so hard. But, we are warm and snug most often in the little farmhouse together.

  2. oh, dearest j. ….congratulations on being published, yet again!
    such imagery in this post….i felt the wind as you described….
    beautiful writing….beautiful photos….as always….

    *

  3. Michele Leblanc says

    Hi there! I was just looking at that magazine online this morning and saw a photo of you in the magazine, I was like yes! Love it!
    I have been struggling with anxiety for the past 20 some years, we are trying to get pregnant and I had two miscarriages since last year and I lost my job this summer. Now all an all I think loosing that job was the best thing that happened to me! I’ve since been working with a psychologist on conquering my anxiety and it’s been going really well! Also, that was about the time I discovered your blog by reading about it in “Artful Blogging”, I fell in love as soon as I first saw your photographs, I was like, who is this person and I want to know as much about her as I can! You inspired me in ways no one else ever did, I’ve grown in my photography, my art, even my running! I thought wow, that’s how I want to live, freedom to express myself without worrying about being judged;) I’ve even taken the step to sharing more of my artwork and photos! Thank you so so so very much, you deeply inspire me to be a better person all around, thank you!

    P.s. Your work is A.mazing!

  4. Congrats! :*

  5. a storm just blew through here, quite like the one you describe in this post. the ferocious wind, soil picked up and carried aloft with stinging speed, raindrops that lashed at leaves on the trees, a loud clap of crackling, vibrating thunder sending horses running in all directions… and now, birds sing on the branches outside my window, patches of blue sky reappear through the clouds, and the air is still. storm as metaphor for life: the calm always follows the storm.

    so very very proud of you, always. you are living into your dreams.
    xoxo

  6. This summer the winds blew me to a nearby lake the night of a SUPER moon. We went out in our kayaks at sunset as the moon was coming up over the dells. It was spectacular! I didnt know which way to turn there was so much beauty! Then we were left floating on the water with the reflection of the moon like a candle in a window. I didnt need anything to enhance this moment – it was spiritual……life changing…..certainly moment – changing.

    I read your blog whenever you post, I look forward to it. Thank you! Enter me to win! 🙂

  7. I live on the east coast of sunny Australia. I love summer and heavy heat and the warm waves of the South Pacific. But the wind blew me to Washington State a few years back, to the damp and blustery grey, and I found a missing piece of my soul there, in the mountains and in the trees. These past few years have been about erecting umbrellas and sails and sheets, coaxing the wind to blow me on back to the place where I once, completely unexpectedly, found home.

  8. Congratualtions! Idaho winds are truly exceptional and they do seem to carry your spirit away to a magical place. I always thought my house would break free from the earth and be carried to another world. My friends don’t understand this but I truly believe I get energy from the north wind.

  9. I love your photography and your beautiful writing!

  10. Life has left me not far from where I was born. But I feel the stirrings of a storm ready to blow me out of the city and into the wilds. Thank you a million times over for the beauty of yourself.

  11. That looks like such a great magazine!

    Where I live here in the deep, humid South, I’m always struck by how, just before a big rainstorm, the air seems so heavy and full like a soaking wet sponge, and you can feel the wedges of cold air force their way through and know the rain is on its way.

  12. Feeling shy today, so I’ll just say hi.
    Hi, and congratulations. Good work friend.
    xx

  13. Some of my favorite weather is windy, wet and wild! Let’s see what happens – maybe the luck of the draw will blow my way!

  14. I have truly loved all the many beautiful places you’ve taken me since I found you here. Your images & words should be shared far and wide.

  15. Ah, great beauty! I would love to see this one up close. Thank you!

  16. Congratulations on this new journey. I love your post. I have been sick for the past 13 months, detoxing from parasites I caught 14 years ago. I haven’t been able to go anywhere except work and the doctors. Reading your post allowed me to travel with you and experience the cool wind and refreshing rain, while taking my daily detox bath. I would love to win. Thank you for hosting this giveaway.

  17. Hi,
    every morning, I look for a post, and I miss you when you are not here.
    your pictures are so amazing, colors and landscapes wow…It’s like a rendez vous.
    I’m near Paris, close to a forest and here the wind can be strong, and trees can sing and move as if they were dancing. I love that.
    I hope everythings fine for you, see you soon, and definitely, I love your soul.

  18. Wow congratulations! I’ve always dreamed of seeing one of my photos published but I’m not sure how to make it happen. Great work!

  19. So happy for you, I hope to see many more publications with your sweet name on it.
    I am so thankful for where the wind has taken my family this last year. After living in the desert for 28 years, 9 month ago we moved to Eugene, Oregon. I finally feel HOME! I love the rain, the green, & the people. But if I had not lived the majority of my life in a dry and thirsty last, I believe my appreciation for Oregon would be less. My heart is thankful & Greatful for the journey.

  20. Jillian, I just love everything when it comes to your blog, photographs, writings, jewelry, everything. Congrats on the another publication in a book. I purchased the last one in Where Woman Create a very nice article. I have a Canon Rebel T3i that I just purchase the beginning of this year am working on photographing. I love your’s, if you have any tips or for that how you photograph yourself it would be a pleasure to hear from you. I love you soul too.

  21. P.S. should read I love your soul too!

  22. Can’t wait to see your spread in this magazine! Stampington always produces lovely mags – I’m not surprised you’ve been published in it!

    The winds have really been whipping this summer, which is unusual for August in Niagara. I’ve been been blown from one coast of Canada to the other and back to the middle over the years. Who knows if this is the last stop on the journey, though….

  23. hi…love your writing and photos…always an inspiration to me.

  24. soul storms happening here…
    undeniable yawning, subterranean life forces are comin’ on up

    emerging like many layered, directional cell bodies…crazy growing neuron, axon, synapse, dendrite, and axon terminals stretching to repeat, repeat, repeat

    something’s happening and i’m not sure what, but i like it and i want it

    salute to you, jillian, from my skytop to yours

  25. Hi Jillian, thanks for the beautiful post! The past few years the winds of (work) life have taken me around the world–morocco, Jordan, West Bank, Afghanistan. I love the travel, but lately it has left me feeling scattered and disoriented. I think a shift has happened where being home and appreciating and being present where I am has become much more appealing. Thank you again for your lovely blog, photos and jewelry!

  26. You already know the wind-blown details of my life…and I am right where I’m meant to be.
    I’m impatient, like a storm and I couldn’t wait. I just bought the Bella grace magazine. I celebrate you!
    That first image describes you perfectly. That’s what I think.
    x

  27. Kelsey Lewin says

    I just wanted to say congratulations! It must be really validating to have your writing and photos published! I only recently discovered your blog, but I have spent the last few days back reading all your entries. I’m currently on page 109! Your photos and writings have been so inspirational. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You have reminded me to linger and appreciate all the beauty around me, and it has been truly awakening.

  28. This summer the winds have blown and I’ve resisted…so much to accomplish before these weeks are over; I’ve skipped out on some of the seasonal magic. Last weekend I finally listened and traveled to the Adirondack mountains in upstate NY. I hiked 7 peaks (5 of them on the famed ’46er’ list) in 12.5 hours. My body was bruised, my thoughts were fuzzy, but my soul was alive and electrified as I got back into my car for the drive into town. The bath and meal that followed were excellent and I’ve planned another trip back before the weather cools too much.
    Please do enter me! I’d love a copy : )

  29. The winds in my life have been lifting me, twirling me around and around, upside down and inside out. The gusts calm into gentle breezes and deposit me upon a new ledge of life’s mountain where I plant my bare feet into the earth, reach my arms for the heavens and I breathe a declaration that I am now stronger.

  30. The winds of fall are whispering at my screen door. The breeze of love and family have blown me into the Appalachian mountains all the way from Yellowstone. Just yesterday when life was throwing heavy punches from several directions at me I went down to our creek and was given the gift of seeing two river otter swimming and playing. I couldn’t believe my eyes we live about two miles up stream from New River and it was such a rare and beautiful sight. The heaviness was lifted from my heart and peace swam in.
    Your a true gem I love your soul!!

  31. I’ve been thinking about the constant forward momentum in my life. I’ve been struggling with it for a few months now, but I’m learning how best to embrace it and all of the challenges that come with it. I need to remember that a steady wind at my back is a good thing; the encouragement should hearten me rather than worry me.

    Thank you for this beautiful giveaway!

  32. “haphazard and wild, free and fated” – lovely words, lovely post; I’m new to blogging (only 3 posts so far) and you are definitely one of my inspirations so thanks for being you!

  33. Congratulations on the articles :)! I constantly come over to your site to read the touch of magic that your words & pictures give. I live in Florida and originally lived close to the coast and now that I live a bit away from the ocean I miss the spray of the ocean waves in the wind and the smell when the winds of a storm are nearby.

  34. Would love to win this!
    Winds are not blowing me anywhere these days. I guess you could say, I’m waiting for a bug gust!

  35. I will always end up exactly where I am meant to be…. holding onto this thought today. congratulations- the magazine looks beautiful!

  36. How timely this question of winds carrying us comes to me. I feel as though I’ve been stagnant for too long – I am just about to feel the winds of life move me. I’m getting married next May and we’ll be off moving somewhere else most likely afterwards, and I can’t wait for a new perspective, a new locale – just some new growth!

    Cathy

  37. Elizabeth Dionne says

    The winds can be quite sly. Five years ago they deposited me in southern California after a hop across the county from my home state of Maine. 3000 miles with only a backpack and duffle bag to start a new adventure. I never though I would stay here this long but somehow the yuccas, sage scrub, and warm nights got me to fall in love with them. Who ever thought a girl from the cold wet coast of Maine would become so enamored with desert nights and the warm Pacific. California also introduced me to the man I’m about to marry, thank you Cali. I’ve made a nice little life here but I’m always open for those winds to come billowing up to take me someplace new again.

  38. Elizabeth Waggoner says

    Congratulations, Jillian, on being published again! Well Done! As I’ve already purchased a copy of the magazine, don’t drop my name into the offering – but here’s hoping it will go to one with a soul as poetic as your own.
    Life and circumstances have dropped me here in the middle, and I find that it’s not home – as sometimes happens – but I can BE home through your beautiful words and photos and I look forward to each new post.

  39. Congratulations, Jillian! xx

  40. Congrats on being published! So very exciting! I really love your writings here on the blog…you have such a gift for creating all things beautiful! 🙂

  41. So excited for you!

    I wish I were better at letting the winds blow me. I tend to plan things out to the nth degree and though I dearly wish to go with my guy, I push it to the side and go with logic. Reading your words helps me dream, and hopefully someday gives me the courage to let my dreams become reality.

  42. Congrats! I love reading your words : ) The winds have blown me to a point where I am 6 weeks away from our wedding that will truly be an amazing celebration of life and love. I am ecstatic for what life is giving me in the months to come! Thanks as always for your inspiring words.

  43. Huge congratulations to you, I love your writing!

  44. On behalf of Stampington & Company, I want to thank you Jillian for not only submitting your beautiful photographs and story and allowing us to share your work in the premiere issue of Bella Grace, but also for participating in this blog hop.

  45. Oh, yes! I saw Bella Grace at Barnes & Noble the other day and had to sit down and take a look. I saw one of your photos and gasped “JILLIAN!!” to myself. So nice to see you in that beautiful publication. Congratulations!

  46. Hot…muggy..and still here in the South Carolina Midlands but I’ve been hearing the winds of change whispering softly each night as I sit under the stars…causing my gypsy blood to quicken…making my feet itch to continue some long forgotten journey began in another lifetime. Don’t know when..or where…but that path’s pull beckons. Your sojourns into untamed places feed my soul…thank you for sharing.

  47. There are dreams, and there are dreamers…and then there are those that do.

    Congrats on being published…your work is simply amazing, and inspiring.

    I only wish there was someway of getting your posts emailed…the RSS feed doesn’t seem to work.

    Jen

  48. Miriam Carl says

    Congratulations!

  49. The vast and whimsical life of things untethered. I think I’ll will pop on a plane to Europe for a month. Wish me bonvayage! I’ll smile at it all for you.

  50. Sara Thompson says

    Beautiful post!

  51. Congrats on your publication! Think of all the new folks who will fall into and in love with your world and way of seeing! What an exciting privilege!

    When I was a child I’d climb up a skinny birch and onto the roof of our chicken coop. I would do my best to balance with one foot on either side of the ridge and lean into oncoming thunder storms. I love the wind. Eventually the wind took me further east to the university and the muddy banks of the Tantramar River. Sackville is at the head of the Bay of Fundy, and it seemed on many days as though all the wind in the entire massive Bay, further propelled by the highest tides in the world, was thrown and blown directly at our little town. The most spectacular dancing marsh grass and snow drifts I’ve ever seen. The wind has since blown me North, where it lacks the guts of coastal breezes in the river bottoms, but on hills, on scree on bare mountain faces where buckbrush, birch and grass make themselves miniature and hold onto what silt they can, it is momentous. I spent many stormy days waiting for helicopters in rain, snow, sleet, and the occasional sun, and somehow they all stick out as individual and important moments in my mind. No wind or mountain is ever the same.

    I am pregnant, and while I am so excited to show our child so very many things, one of the things I am most excited to introduce him or her to, is the wind. Right now this critter lives in a world without air, can you imagine what it must be like to feel breeze for the very first time?

    • My daughter is now 18 months and I have watched her throw her head back in the breeze and exclaim “ahhhh” as it caresses her face. The moments I will cherish always…

      Congratulations.

  52. Christina Aiton says

    So enjoyed your inspirational post! this new magazine sounds wonderful – thanks for the chance to win

  53. Congrats on the magazine. Your hard work and talent is an inspiration.
    The winds of life have picked me up and put me down in what often seems like totally different lifetimes. Growing up in a tiny town. The college years. Working at a zoo. Being a park ranger. Moving across the country to begin a new life on the shores of Lake Michigan. Different jobs. Living in upstate NY in an RV named Susie while running a mechanical contracting company with my husband. Moving back to Texas again. And now living in a straw bale house I built and creating a little farmita. I’m thankful for each chapter. For the unique qualities of each situation and the person I was during each of those lives. All my experiences have conspired to mold me into the person I am today. I relish the NOW but I look forward to seeing where I’m carried in the future. No matter what I vow to always make the best of it.

  54. Christine Kiehl says

    Beach comber. Rose smeller. Ice Cream lover. Windows down driver. Rock collector. Native American PowWow goer. Fairy finder. Greeting card maker. Mother. Spoon licker. Love your blog and your post! Nice to meet you. May you be read by 1,000 of curious minds over many years!

  55. Congratulations!

  56. Congratulation. What a beautiful post, I felt that I was there with you.
    Thank you.

  57. I live in the north of England in a 100-year old house that brings me great peace of mind. We are next to a wood & look over a river valley. We have lived here for 40 years & we never want to move house, though we may have to as we get older & less fit. Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy of Bella Grace.

  58. Ah, the first part of your account of racing the storm home made me think you might live in my part of the country – it felt so familiar. I’ve been blown by the winds from the high desert of Idaho to Montana, to northern California Redwood country, and now, for the last many years, to the Sonoran desert of southern Arizona, where it’s monsoon season. And I’ve tried to outrun my share of storms – few things have made me feel more alive. Congratulations on your publication in Bella Grace. And thanks for the pleasure of reading your writing.

  59. Dearest! Heartfelt congratulations on being published. I cant wait to catch up with a copy.
    As far as the winds of life,
    Im getting ready to stir them up. I’ve been too far relaxed and hiding in shelter from the storms
    xo

  60. Happy to have found your blog through the Bella Grace Hop! Your words are special, thanks for sharing.

  61. Heidi Schlehlein says

    Lovely picture and sentiment. It always feels like a wild adventure when its raining and the wind is whipping. Congratulations on your published writing! I hope this is just the beginning…

  62. Congratulations! I found your blog while googling a good guacamole recipe several years ago and have been hooked ever since. I read quietly and don’t think I’ve commented before but I so enjoy your writing, imagery, and art. I’m a country and mountain kind of girl living in New York City currently – just finished up with an MFA there. I find much comfort in your words and photos. Authentic, genuine and a beautifully written. I’m admiring from afar.

  63. Congratulations!! I can’t wait to see this beautiful sounding magazine!
    Hmm… the winds have plucked me from comfy, cozy, *green* suburbia and put me down in the grey city. There is not much I can do about outside my door, so I have focused on the inside of these walls – making a home for my family. Making it as beautiful as I can. My version of beauty – which is homemade goodness from clay, paintbrush and fiber. Hopefully someday soon the winds will sweep us all up and deposit us somewhere green 🙂

  64. YEEHAW!! Here’s to the printed word! Congrats, sugar beet! xoxo

  65. Karen Mary says

    The colors in the flower photo are stunning. I imagine the magazine is, too! Thanks for contributing!

  66. I’ve really loved this blog hop..! Being introduced to all these beautiful women such as yourself has been wonderful. I love the imagery in your writing and photography…so glad to have found your blog.

  67. Tracey Gardner says

    Congratulations Jillian! What an honor to be published in the very first publication! I would love a copy…

  68. The new magazine sounds grand! Congratulations on all of it–

  69. Kelly Paquet says

    Hi! I do like your blog very much, and the new magazine sounds beautiful. I am 62, and hoping it’s still not too late for me to become all I am meant to be, and to live the best life I can. I hope to make life more beautiful for my grown family and grandchildren.

  70. The winds blew us from Houston to an incredible community in Tennessee…and we are moving there permanently in 2 weeks! Life always seems to kick up some mighty storms right before it places me gently in the place I am meant to be. I always love to come to this space and soak up the beauty. Thank you.

  71. I knew from the beginning that you were a super talented writer and even if I am extremely happy that you are published, I am not surprised. Love the photographs, text, ambiance, ideas, passion,jewelery,the way you dress, your dogs, your life, where you live, this blog is just a delight.

  72. Susan Wasmer says

    Congratulations on being published.

  73. Inspiring as always! So nice to hear of people’s dreams coming true; to hear of others being discovered and appreciated for the work they pour their heart and soul into. May the wind keep blowing for you.

    Xoxoxo

  74. After being blown hither and thither for the past 12+ years, I find myself back in the town I was born in. And it just so happens to be a town where the wind blows HARD, where you hold tightly onto your car door when the winds come up and where winter can turn temporarily into spring with a good Chinook. It’s strange to be back here and yet it feels like home.

  75. How wonderful it would be to have a real something, in my hands, to read at the river below me or on the mountain top above me! I love books and I adore magazines! Something to see on the book shelf everyday, to inspire me by candle light when the winter storms knock out our power as they inevitably do ever year.
    The winds of my life have blown me exactly where I want to be, on to a mountain in the B.C. Interior, with my daughter and my man, and our two dogs who keep the bears out of my garden. It’s sometimes stormy, this ain’t no life for sissies. But we Canadian girls know how to enjoy even the hard work. It always pays off in the end! Congrats to you!

  76. Since spring winds blew into the PNW I’ve found myself being wheeled into the OR for three different unplanned surgeries…. “the perfect storm” of unwelcome events that rocked my spring and summer. I have allowed these winds to sweep through but held my ground…being tossed to and fro but anchored. I am hopeful the storm has ended as I recuperate from the third and perhaps last gale. So delighted to see your writings in print…. so delighted.

  77. Keep your roots, but unfurl your wings!!!!!!!

  78. I’ve always thought a strong wind feels like change.
    Congratulations on the article!

  79. The wind blew me where I did not wish to go. I’m hoping to figure out where I truly belong someday.

  80. sherry butcher says

    Hi, and congratulations.

  81. Oh yes, we are all those things, always, and always just where we are meant to be. Your life, and your writing, is such a beautiful adventure.

    (And no need to enter me in the giveaway, I just wanted to stop by and say hello).

  82. I remember one day, many years ago, when I was floundering a bit (young, apartment searching, dealing with another breaking romance…) I was leaving the subway on my way home from work. As I was standing on the escalator which brought me back up from the underground, I looked down at my feet. I was washed over with that feeling of being exactly where I was meant to be, through everything that was going on. Every step I had ever taken through life had brought me to land right there, on that very escalator, just where I was standing. All the little frayed edges of my emotions popped back together. I was meant to be standing there. If I were destined to be standing elsewhere, then I would have been in that other place. It was a very comforting thought, that we are always in the place we are meant to be in, until the winds blow us away again.

  83. The wind around my nose calmed down, lately. And although my big travelling toe is tickely from time to time. I enjoy being home. Having a home. And having found it. Being loved and being ordinary. Walking along the river. Again and again. Feeling the cold water. And feeling refreshed. And sometimes the wind is waving.
    I would not want to miss the big adventures behind me. I do not want to be elsewhere but here. But someday, I want to be in my garden.
    Love. And congratulations, you wonderful woman.

  84. I find myself more excited at times by what the wind blows my way rather than where it carries me. I love reading your words, so often you write what I think but can not seem to verbalize. What an achievement for you!! So happy for you and your triumphs!
    x

  85. I love how present you are in all that you do. There is a natural rhythm to your words that brings the reader to the place with you, with ease. Love it. And would love to see the article(s) you wrote for this new magazine as well!
    For me, the winds of life are blowing me back to the land I grew up on…100 acres of lush NY State hillside on Briar Creek, with plans to build a small eco-designed cabin to live/retreat/grow within. My man is a stone mason, and with all the pasture lined, old falling down walls…I can’t wait to see what beauty grows. My roots are calling and that land is sacred to me…feels good to embraces this directional. xo

    (ps….did you ever make it to the Narrative Jewelry show in Boise?)

  86. Simone Turner says

    Congratulations Jillian! I knew it, I knew it the very first time I found you on these ole interwebulars! Your work, I was first pulled in by your amazingly talent silversmithing. Then, slowly I began to know you thru your words and pictures. I love your soul too, more than you will ever know! So thank you, thank you for this. You know I have this thing that I do, that happens to me…When ever where ever I am, and I look down and see a feather, I KNOW, in my heart of hearts, that I am exactly where I am suppose to be. It’s been happening a lot lately, this is a good sign! Keep up the good work girl, such an inspiration you are! Okay I’m getting ready to dive into this little magazine and check it all out! I’ma gonna get me a copy come winds or high waters!!! Much love and light, Simone

  87. “…as free and fated as anything….” Shivers! Congratulations! And, of course, I would love to read you in print. x.

  88. The winds of life have brought gentle loving breezes and violent raging storms,I’m sure it is the same for many lives. My maternal grandmother taught me to whisper on the wind and my son says he often hears my voice calling on the wind. 😉

  89. So happy for you! The winds are blowing me towards motherhood–11 weeks to go. It would be wonderful to take a break from all the what-to-expect books to read this lovely publication.

  90. The wind is getting ready to blow me to Missouri. We move from TN on the 26th.

  91. Love your words and your photography, I do know about the wind, it is a strong storm at my home and I pray I can withstand it,I also live in southern Idaho. I love recognizing places you have been, it inspires my photography as well. Thank you for your beautiful work and inspiring words.

  92. The winds of summer have blown me all over the country these past few months– Cali, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Utah, New Hampshire, Mass, New York, and Maine. I’ve relished the journeys by trying to look closely at each place and recognize the unique beauty in each.

    Bless you for your blog and sharing of beauty, Jillian and congrats on getting published. I reckon this won’t be the last! 🙂

  93. Thank you. The wind has blown me back to Colorado and I am home.

  94. How lovely to meet your soul through your words, photos, art – and — even a film! What a treat to hear your voice and see your studio! You’re an inspiration and a bright light in this world, thank you so much for being you.

  95. scorpio grrrl says

    i love the wind. whether i’m on a ranch in wyoming or at home in utah. i love the wind. i used to follow it’s lead a lot more often in times past. i miss that. it used to be a part of me, no longer. i really miss that.
    thank you for making me feel the wind again, if only for a moment.

  96. Laura Strack says

    What a beautiful post. So enjoying this Hop and all the inspirational words. So uplifting!

  97. well, we are on the wind right now . . . waiting to see where it sets us down . . . we have some high hopes . . .

    i would love to hold and read and savor this magazine

  98. Congrats!:) and i would love to read in real this lovely magazine!:)

  99. Hello Jillian!
    Congratulations! I’m always very happy when I know about this kind of news.
    I’ll be back later to read you carefully and slowly. I happen to enjoy it much more as first I have to connect myself to english! But I didn’t want to forget participating in the giveaway.

    Hugs from Argentina, as always.

  100. I feel the winds of change every day when I look in my girls faces. The way they grow, sometimes, seemingly overnight. It goes so fast. So terribly fast. Wishing I could freeze some moments and savor them for just a little while longer.

  101. Congrats on being published! Love your photography – especially Old Swayback. May the winds always be at your back. Blessings.

  102. Congratulations dear friend…seriously, you are an inspiration! I would love love to see this magazine even if to read through your two articles. xxx

  103. Hello –
    Saw a copy here in town and bought it, pronto! Just want to congratulate you on the lovely work. Huzzah!

  104. Hi! Congrats!

  105. Congratulations from a long-time reader. Would love to have a copy of this beautiful book for inspiration.

  106. Growing up with a father in the military, the winds have blown me all over the place. I have sometimes loved being the new girl exploring a new place, and sometimes felt isolated and lonely and left behind. Good preparation for adulthood and my own children’s experiences. Knowing it all goes by — both fun and challenges — helps you stay grounded when the wind picks up again.

    Lovely blog! Congratulations on the publication!

  107. Those winds have been busy rearranging things…
    We recently blew back into the Midwest after over a decade in Colorado. Time to come home to family. I was sad for a little while, missing my favorite breakfast place, missing the mountains and the elevation and the constant energy until I realized none of those things were going anywhere. That it would all still be there any time I wanted to hop on a plane, or take a road trip. That the people back here wouldn’t be here forever, and isn’t that what’s most important at the end of the day? I’ve found some glorious new friendships here by the quiet, subtle hills and lakes. It feels good, growing into my happiness.

  108. You inspire me every day. Seriously.
    Can’t wait to read your published articles.
    Blessings to you!

  109. Ariane Cagle says

    The winds of life carried me high into sky when I learned how to fly a plane. My husband, at the time, had learned to fly and bought an airplane. I decided it would be good for me to conquer my fear and learn to fly, too. Several years later, my husband and I divorced. I learned how to spread my wings and “fly” through life on my own, raising my son.

    I loved your post. It painted a vivid picture.

  110. Jillian, you are a poet. Loved your post.
    I saw your article on the preview pages at Stampington and it caught my eye as I’m planning on a new venture and have been tossing around calling it Dark Horse. Therefore I’ve been so wanting to read the article, but cannot find Bella Grace anywhere in lower mainland BC.
    This is how I discovered your site.
    Cheers to a fellow Canadian-born. Stay wildhearted!

  111. Congratulations Jillian! I’ve always been one to admire people like you whom can express themselves like you do. It sure is fun finding your blog along with the other’s on this blog hop and I look forward to coming back to hear more of your lovely words….

    Warm regards,
    Karla

  112. AH well done beautiful!

  113. Hi Jillian!!! 🙂
    i’m really loving all the people i am discovering through this blog hop 🙂
    you are all a beauty in a many ways.
    so glad to see and read your photographs + writings.
    just love + inspired 🙂

  114. good morning…. thanks again & always for your postings. i have been loving these late summer rainshowers in several western states. they bring me pure & true joy. laughing as i get caught on my scooter in a deluge. blinded on the short drive home. wetter than i’ve ever been. laughing & hiding from it under an umbrella on a cafe patio. laughing as my backside is soaked and i finally accept defeat, and run into the dryness of the interior with my soggy drink. laughing as the windshield wipers fail to clear a void for me. these rains make me laugh because i know they drive other people nuts. like woodpeckers. i laugh at urban woodpeckers as much as those in the woods & forests. just hearing one working on a telephone pole makes me giggle, i know others don’t appreciate their beauty like i do. i’m wide eyed with wonder at monsoon rains & woodpeckers. i’m also afraid of bluebirds.
    just wanted to say.

  115. I love seeing where the wind blows you! I landed in Western MA 21 years ago. This is now home. I’ve grown such deep roots. Can’t wait to read your latest piece.
    <3
    Lauran

  116. Pitched my To Do (Should Do) list for awhile and had a great time exploring your gallery, film, and shop links and reading all of the above!
    I find beauty all around me, but especially lately in discovering how many people are choosing to live their lives looking for that and creating it around them, rather than buying into the Industrial Age more is better Big Business so-called American Dream models that get pushed on us. It gives me so much hope for the future and love for the day!
    Thanks for sharing, and thanks to Bella Grace for encouraging this!

  117. Saundra A. says

    Loved reading your blog and congrats on being published! Inspiring.

  118. Congratulations!! I knew you could do it!
    Loving the wapiti ring by the way. Many compliments to you on that.
    Have a great week!

  119. Congratulations to you! What a wonderful treat and honor!!!
    The winds have blown me and my man in many directions, but at the moment we are in a bit of a spin and are being pulled from coast to coast. Trying to find a place to land. But you know, they have a saying here in New England: “If you don’t like the weather, just wait 15 minutes…”. Let’s see where the wind takes us, shall we??

    xo

  120. How divine! The winds of life have taken me through a dry season of unemployment and dropped me right in the seat of a lovely career…oh, how I wish I had made the most of those unfettered days and traveled more while I had the opportunity.

  121. Congratulations to you! What a wonderful and well-deserved honor! It’s so nice to “meet” you through Stampington’s blog hop. The winds have blown me in so many directions- mostly away from home. I have realized that I need to keep my focus on God in order to understand why I have been placed in certain areas instead of others. Every place has a special connection for me; a building block to reach a higher level and to extend my hands to help someone else. Thank you for listening 🙂

  122. Congratulations on your publication in Bella Grace. I just picked up my first copy of the magazine and find it delightful!

  123. Hello!
    What a beautiful giveaway-the magazine sounds just beautiful! Congrats on being published!

    The winds have blown me into a whole new chapter of being a woman and redefining what that means for me. God has reminded me how much more I need Him and what that will look like from here on out.

    Blessings!

  124. Jillian, your words and your images inspire me! I come here again and again to see what adventures await. So glad I found your little oasis! Thank you. 🙂

  125. The winds of time have blown my heart wide open and I feel joyous with every new day. Congrats on publishing another beautifully written piece.

  126. Yay Jillian! How wonderful to get to see your beautiful work in print!
    Twenty-three years ago, the wind picked me up and took me safely across the globe to Indonesia. My life from that point on changed in ways I had never before imagined. . The wind has since picked me up again and taken me to many places along the way back to my homeland of Québec. I love how the wind picks us up and places us where we need to be!
    Thanks so much for the chance – good luck to all! XX

  127. Congratulations! I can’t wait to see your article the new magazine!

  128. Catherine Chandler says

    Oh I’m so excited for you, getting your writing published!! I know this has been a dream–good on ya on getting it done! Sending you love and light dear one.

  129. Congratulations!! So exciting to be a witness to your evolution of success and dreams fulfilled, you continue to be a precious soul who inspires and enriches the lives of many. Now your audience is going to expand a hundred fold!!

  130. congratulations jillian!

  131. !!!

  132. april and max mancha says

    I have learned so much from you. I have been reminded to appreciate our beautiful earth and those inhabiting it. Sometimes we need reminding to take a deep breath and enjoy. I love all of your beautiful imagery. Kudo’s on your publication. Im inspired by you daily.

  133. Sarah Brockington says

    Congratulations! Such beautiful writing.

  134. Beautiful post and the book looks amazing also. The West Coast wind never fails to propel me to my hometown in the Interior each and every peach season! I spent 3 long weeks camped out with my little folk. The lake breeze was but a flutter in the desert heat, beckoning us to plunge rather than wade. Some days the smoke from nearby forest fires settled in a haze throughout the valley and other days the wind carried the smoke to settle elsewhere. Some evenings the storm ripped at our tent, creaking the pines above sending a shower of pinecones. Some days felt so breathless, the air thick with sage and my own sweat that i felt myself becoming a part of the dry earth. Evenings on the swing, a gentle gust ruffled and refreshed us. Eventually we drifted back to our home in the city with cases of peaches and sage smudges to inspire.

  135. Jillian, beautiful inspiring post! The wind has certainly blown me in many directions, some I was just tossed about and others I went freely with the breeze, but all in all, I agree with what you said, i have landed softly right where I am meant to be! I look forward to reading your articles!

  136. Jillian,
    Great read as always. You make me feel young again, as you take me away on the winds
    of your thoughts and adventures. I always look forward to what you have for me on a daily
    basis. Thanks for the ride.
    Bert M.

  137. Susan Marling says

    Why haven’t I ever seen this publication – it looks gorgeous. Congratulations Jillian in having your work in it. I so admire your writing and unbelievable photography. I am probably one of the more silent followers of yours!

  138. Hello from Oregon where the winds of summer are pushing us quickly toward fall! xx

  139. hi! great space!

  140. Lovely essay. I’m at a transition in my life right now,and I feel the strong call of the wilderness, which was always there actually, but circumstances took me down a different path that I’m in the process of changing now. Every time I read one of your pieces or view your spectacular images, it brings me to a place I thought I had lost. It’s healing me and spurring me to move forward in my life and follow my own passions. Thank you so much. Your creativity has been a gift to me.

  141. I enjoyed reading your post and seeing with my mind’s eye the images of the wind and rain. Congratulations on being published in the first issue of Bella Grace!

  142. I’ll winds have been blowing around me for the last few years. But gentle breezes sustain me each day. Living each moment instead of looking always at the big scary maelstrom is the key to a happier life. Your words and imagery are lovely.

  143. Congratulations!
    Katerina

  144. Congratulations, Jillian! Well done!! 🙂

  145. Who could resist wanting to read some more of your lovely writings? Congratulations on your published works!
    The winds of change are upon me now with an expected career change. At first I was uneasy, no I can’t wait for the new experience. 🙂

  146. Moved forward into the sixties a little too fast! Enjoyed your writing and photos!

  147. sherry butcher says

    The winds had taken me from Iowa to Spain and back, now into a widows life in New Mexico, each time enjoying my family and everyday with my dog & friends. TFS.

  148. Donna Mohney says

    Can’t wait to hold Bella Grace in my hands! Congrats on being part of it!

  149. Yesterday, the warm holiday weekend winds blew me, along with my friends and 2 faithful beasts, to a gem of a swimming hole in the “mighty” Hassayampa River tucked away in the Bradshaw Mountains of Central AZ. We discovered the swimming hole earlier this spring when it was full with winter runoff. We watched as the swimming hole dried and grew smaller, muddy, before the onset of summer monsoon. With the welcome precipitation, the swimming hole has once again returned to glory. With rocks to bask in the sunshine on, jump off of, and a little creek and waterfalls to explore upstream, it was a perfect Sunday.

  150. you took me along on your wind. it was a captivating visual journey. thank you so much for sharing! it’s always wonderful to read someone’s writing that becomes an immersion for me. Love your writing! Congrats on Bella Grace! can’t wait to see it!

  151. The skies are trying to open up right one, here in Texas. The thunder is roaring. Our windows rattle each time the lightening strikes. It’s been two months since we have had rain. “Bring it down,” I pray quietly to myself.

    Your blog evokes a kind of awe in me that few places do. There’s a part of me that wants to/imagines myself blowing away in the wind, just like you said. Maybe we all have those pieces….

  152. Well done lady…xo

  153. Love the look of this magazine and have just stumbled across your gorgeous web site and blog! I would really love to have a copy of Bella Grace – I have ended up being blown to a place I love living, in a little cottage and garden that is so perfect for me, with a new job that I finally start at the end of the month, companioned by a heart-pony who lives only a few minutes away from me, and with two kittens that join me in a few weeks’ time – it has all been a long time coming, but I finally feel like I am where I am supposed to be, and I am so looking forward to putting down roots and sending up incredible new shoots of myself as a result. I think Bella Grace is just what I need for inspiration on the new journey!

  154. Whenever I read your posts I feel like I’m there. Beautiful!

  155. congratulations on being published in this beautiful magazine – the winds have blown me around the world…. peeking into each country for a brief moment – 52 and counting.

Trackbacks

  1. […] ordinary artist, and our latest contributor, Jillian Lukiwski, who wrote an insightful piece about becoming part of the wind. Both bloggers are also holding giveaways, so be sure to stop by each blog for more details on how […]

  2. […] tail thumping against warm bedcovers; and the adventures you’re bound to experience when you go wherever the wind wills; and the smell of sunshine; and the beauty of the harvest moon; but if you missed any of the […]