The expression on her face revealed tremendous loss. Her wiry hair brushed my chin as her head dropped to my chest. While on the street near The Scarlet Cord installation, the woman embraced me for a long time. As a friend rubbed her back, grief surfaced. A deep lament bubbled up. After several minutes, these…
Her body screamed, “Don’t touch me.” Yet her words revealed her vulnerability. Deep hidden trauma. Visible. She was trying to hide her past. Or perhaps her present. But she unveiled her secrets to a group of us standing opposite her at The Scarlet Cord installation. One of the Women At Risk volunteers offered her a…
Here are the journal entries on my experiences at North Central Michigan College: October 27, 2014 The tears started to flow when the first class came through the installation. The Scarlet Cord continues to promote healing. A professor said, “A visceral experience: Entering the container was like entering their world.” October 28, 2014 When a…
It was an honor to host Makoto Fujimura in my garden for tea. As we talked around the wrought iron table, a yellow leaf fell. Mako picked up the leaf and artfully arranged it on the table near his tea cup. It was a beautiful image—watching Mako embrace beauty. I’m very grateful for Mako’s willingness…
Gracious and dedicated Women at Risk volunteers showed up every day at The Scarlet Cord installation to tie red string bracelets on ArtPrize visitors. By last Friday evening, with another two days of ArtPrize 2014 yet to go, all 30,000 available bracelets had been given out! People kept asking for them because they wanted to…
A young woman sat on the curb—crying—after viewing The Scarlet Cord. A young man sat next to her with his arm tight around her. Five minutes later, they were still sitting on the curb, and she was still crying. So I decided to approach them. Kneeling down, I asked the young woman, “Are you okay?”…