4.25″ X 4.75″

Deep in the quiet woodlands
Where only the melody
Of birds, rustling twigs and leaves
Are heard with ears
While beneath the surface
a voluminous chorus sings

Beyond our ears and eyes
An entire, lively realm
Races about – tending
To the hidden, buried messengers
Sharing secrets and songs
Of an invisible, perfect embrace

In this other realm
Lay the mysterious threads
The infinite arms
The ever-present Breath
Nourishing each tiny cell
One to the other

A tiny, yellow bloom may be glimpsed
If only with wholly wakeful eyes
of the quiet radiant trillium
Gracing a blanket of mottled greens
Revealing to us a mere slice of her hidden
radiance

This tiny one grows
In a somberly, quiet purity
Of triads – of balance – of harmony
A quiet reflection – revelation -to us
Of the seemingly hidden perfection
Of the mysterious realm we breathe

Inspiration

On the earlier Trillium vessel, I chose the rich, red blossoms of the Trillium erectum for the vessel. For Quiet Radiance, I chose the Yellow Trillium with slightly different growing habits and characteristics. Trilliums bloom within two different categories: pedicellate and sessile. The Trillium vessel Erectum bloom as a pedicellate (on a stem that arises from the foliage) and the yellow trillium on Quiet Radiance blooms as a sessile without a stem and slightly more modestly. The yellow trillium also has a mottled appearance on the foliage which I have chosen to diminish on the bronze vessel (artistic license).

Trillium’s name, once examining the plant, is easily understood. Most often low growing (average height of 6”) it boasts three petals, three slender sepals falling immediately beneath the petals, and grows on a stem with three broad, lower leaves whirling from a center point. Six stamens surround the three-part ovary. The number three is frequently used in my work representing the ultimate creative number, the triad. It was again effortless to connect deeply with the beautiful Perfection and wisdom of this woodland trinity.

The trillium needs to be deeply rooted to thrive. What truly “roots us”, and grounds us, on this earthly plane? Are we also deeply rooted and in what or whom are we rooted? How might we nourish ourselves to remain deeply rooted enough to thrive and not merely survive? Growing quietly in the rich forest floor, clusters of the quiet yellow trillium naturally give profound witness and confirmation to Divine Perfection as they sprout toward the heavens.

Ants enable the trillium to sow its seeds, eating away the oil rich appendage and abandoning the seeds to sprout. Ants – tenacious, patient, community-builders – help the trillium flourish. As I needled my way on the bottom of the vessel, etching three ants, I quietly reflected: Are we patient, tenacious, community-builders? Do we feed ourselves while also supporting the real nourishment of others? Are our social choices supporting our ultimate nourishment and our interdependence? Perhaps we might embrace and follow the wisdom of nature. Many trilliums are either protected or endangered. The quiet work of the ants, sowing the seeds supports their extended life. Do we appreciate the “ants” in our lives – the vast synchronicities (experiences, people and gifts) often working through invisible channels for our highest good?

“Everything is Perfection” though often hidden from our eyes. The trillium is a beautiful display of this Truth. The Quiet Radiance nature vessel presents six (3+3) blooms on the vessel form. Three ants crawl on the bottom of the vessel – symbolic of the incessant, invisible nourishment for its continued growth. I chose the edition size of 111, reflecting again the perfection of “three”. The small, lovely Quiet Radiance with its obvious triad of the quiet woodland icon, echoes the sacred “three” in a soft and tender manner. It is a spring miracle in perfect harmony and a perfect companion piece for other vessels within the Tree of Life and Nature Series. May it remind all who gaze upon her, of the often quiet, while fertile perfection always flowing within our lives.