Love | The Direction of Intention

Stand In A Greater Story [on not-so-flawed Wednesday]

Posted on October 10, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

Three years ago today Kerri and I were married. It was the single best day of my life. We were married on 10/10 and the ceremony began at 11:11 exactly. Our friends tease that the reception started, not mysteriously, at 12:12.

The great advantage of a second marriage is that you feel no obligation to meet expectations or obey any “should-dos.” It was a blue jeans wedding. We wore black (like we do every other day of the week) and matching Frye Boots. Our ceremony was a storytelling. Kerri wrote a song for me. There were lots of hugs. A ukulele band played us out and we spontaneously skipped down the aisle just like we’d skipped out of the airport on the day we met.

At the reception (12:12 on the dot) we had a food truck serving burgers and sweet potato fries. There’s a back story to burgers and fries but I’ll save that for another day. It’s enough to note that the food truck wasn’t a random idea but part of a greater story – as with everything we planned for our passage ritual into togetherness. We had Yamaha’s daisy cupcakes and MaryKay’s brownies. We had hula-hoops and kick balls. We danced until after dark and moved to the beach for a bonfire. So many special people came from all over the country to celebrate with us. A legion of friends and family helped us make it happen; our wedding was (and still is) the love equivalent of a barn raising.

A greater story. Second chances do happen. Broken roads sometimes lead to vibrant gardens rich with lessons, endless appreciation of the small things, and a sense of utter amazement that this is where life brought me. Brought us. I was wrong to write that 10/10/15 was the best day of my life. In truth, it marked the source of a river of best days. Each an anniversary, a day of life in the story of ‘us,’ a greater story.

read Kerri’s blog post about FRYE BOOTS ON A RED CARPET

love it

Filed under: Flawed Wednesday, Gratitude, Love, Uncategorized | Tagged: anniversary, bonfire, burgers and fries, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, Food trucks, Frye Boots, Kerri Sherwood, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, ritual, second chances, studio melange, togetherness, us, wedding, wedding day | Leave a comment »

Fly Between The Poles [on DR Thursday]

Posted on September 27, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

a morsel from ‘angel.’ kerri calls it ‘you can’t hold the sun’

Icarus‘ wings were made of wax and feathers. His father, Daedalus, made them so he and Icarus could escape their imprisonment. Before taking flight, Daedalus warned Icarus not to fly too low nor too high. Icarus flew too close to the sun, the wax melted and his wings fell apart. He fell from the sky and drowned.

We see most of the Greek stories sifted through a post-Greek moralistic lens. Fly to high, hubris. Fly too low, complacency. The world as defined by polarities. Heaven, hell. Good, bad. Right, wrong. There’s another possibility.

Quinn used to tell me that the point of all the world’s religions, the message in all the great stories, is to find the middle way. To live in the center. This world, he said, will try its best to tug you to the extremes. It will dose you with propaganda, half truths. It will glorify US and demonize THEM. It will bamboozle you into twisted notions like ‘the dehumanization of others is okay.’ It is the lucky person that realizes that it is impossible to strip others of their humanity without also losing their own. Polarities are like that.

So, seek balance. Walk between the tug of the poles. It is the point of presence – live here, not in the scary future nor the regrettable past. Fly, not too close to either pole, but through the middle. Now. It’s possibly the point of the story.

This morsel is called You Can’t Hold The Sun. It’s true. You can’t stop time. No moth can withstand the flame. The sun will melt your waxy wings. The sea will make your feathers heavy with dew. Either way, you fall.

In the face of too much moralizing, Kerri will say, “If it’s not about kindness or joy, it’s not about anything.” That’s a statement from the center. I like to think that this center place, this middle way that Quinn told me about, is what we call love.

angel, acrylic on 2 panels, 48 x 24IN

icarus, acrylic on canvas, 30.5 x 59.5IN

www.kerrianddavid.com

you can’t hold the sun/angel ©️ 2018/2004 David Robinson

Filed under: Art, Creativity, DR Thursday, Love, Uncategorized | Tagged: balance, center, daedalus, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, icarus, Kerri Sherwood, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, love, middle way, presence, religion, society6.com/davidrobinson, stories, sun, wings | Leave a comment »

Bring It [on KS Friday]

Posted on September 14, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

It happened again today. Taking a walk in our neighborhood this morning a woman stopped us to tell us that we make her smile. We always walk arm in arm or holding hands. “You make me feel happy,” she said.

At first we were surprised by the people that stopped us. It’s been a curiosity in our relationship since the beginning that people are compelled to stop us to tell us that we make them smile. On the street, in airports, at restaurants, in hotel lobbies, farmer’s markets. Once, a shopkeeper came out of his store to tell us, “You two are a cute couple! It’s good!” he said, giving us a thumbs up. Another time, we were at the grumbling end of a heated debate and a woman, wrestling with her English, said, “You walk together! Same stride. It’s beautiful!” She clasped her hands to her heart and walked on. Suddenly, our disgruntled debate seemed…stupid. We laughed.

It makes us smile. They make us smile. Every time. These people who think that we bring a bit of light into their day are actually bringing a warm joy-feel into ours. It’s a loop. Or a mirror. Either way, it is a reminder of how love works in this big old world. Bring it and it will come looking for you.

SAME SWEET LOVE on the album AS SURE AS THE SUN available on iTunes & CDBaby

ends September 16

read Kerri’s blog post about SAME SWEET LOVE

www.kerrianddavid.com

same sweet love/as sure as the sun ©️ 2002 kerri sherwood

Filed under: KS Friday, Love, Uncategorized | Tagged: album as sure as the sun, arm in arm, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, feedback loop, hand in hand, joy feels, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, love, relationship, same sweet love, society6.com/kerrisherwood | Leave a comment »

Spend Time Together [on KS Friday]

Posted on September 7, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

In the fall of 2013, still new in our relationship yet already tired of making it work at a distance, Kerri and I flew to Seattle, packed my studio, my paintings, and my few worldly possessions into a Budget truck. We headed east over Snoqualmie Pass en route to Wisconsin. The trip took us five days. Five days of adventure. Five days of gorgeous scenery. Five days of uninterrupted time together. It served as the portal into our new life.

This piece, TIME TOGETHER, could be the soundtrack for our five day journey. It is hopeful, bright, and present in the way that people become when on a road trip, surrounded by a startling world, en route to the unknown new. On this KS Friday, sit back in your seat, close your eyes, and let Kerri’s TIME TOGETHER take you on the road. Marvel at the simple pleasure of companionship, of precious time shared with the person you love.

TIME TOGETHER on the album THIS PART OF THE JOURNEY is available on iTunes & CDBaby

read Kerri’s blog post about TIME TOGETHER

www.kerrianddavid.com

tolerate or like us on facebook

time together/this part of the journey ©️ 2000 kerri sherwood

Filed under: KS Friday, Love, Uncategorized | Tagged: album - this part of the journey, Budget truck, companionship, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, inspiration, Kenosha, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, relationships, road trip, Seattle, shared time, simple pleasure, society6.com/kerrisherwood, solo piano, this part of the journey, time together, travel | Leave a comment »

Love The Cover [on KS Friday]

Posted on August 31, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

andgoodnight song box copy

What’s in an album cover?

The tiny shoes hang on a door knob just outside of Kerri’s studio. They’re hers! She wore them. Now they hang next to the shoes her babies wore. The soft pastel blanket is downstairs in a safe place. She wrapped her babies in that blanket. And the piano, well, it lives in the room I call Kerri’s studio but once served as the nursery to her children. It is a special room and no wonder so many amazing compositions have been born there. She gave life to this lullaby in that room, sitting at the piano that occupies the space where her rocker once sat next to the cradle.

What’s in this album cover? More life than you can possibly imagine. What’s gave rise to this lullaby? More love than one heart can possibly contain.

AND GOODNIGHT from the album AND GOODNIGHT, available on iTunes & CDBaby

www.kerrianddavid.com

like us on facebook

and goodnight/and goodnight ©️ 2005 kerri sherwood

Filed under: Family, KS Friday, Love, Story, Uncategorized | Tagged: and goodnight, and goodnight album, and goodnight cd, babies, children, cradle, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, love, lullaby, nursery, rocking chair, society6.com/kerrisherwood, studio melange, the melange | Leave a comment »

Free Fall in Love [on KS Friday]

Posted on August 3, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

One of the first things I learned and loved about Kerri was her natural impulse to story telling. During rehearsals she is famous for putting her hands on the piano, the choir poised, inhaling to sing the first note, and without warning, she will break into a story. “Did I tell you what happened this week!” We exhale in laughter and confusion, caught off guard (again!) and tumbling into her tale.

Deep down inside my solo-piano-playing-composer-wife harbors a country music singer. She tells me that FREEFALLIN’ IN LOVE is her nod to that part of herself. If I am successful in my intentions I will liberate that honky tonk woman so she can tell us more stories through song. She’s a natural. Just ask the choir. Or the neighbors. Or our friends. Or people we meet on the road. In the grocery store….

FREEFALLIN’ IN LOVE on AS SURE AS THE SUN is available in iTunes & CDBaby

purchase the physical CD here

read Kerri’s blog post about FREEFALLIN’ IN LOVE

www.kerrianddavid.com

freefallin’ in love/as sure as the sun ©️ 2002 kerri sherwood

Filed under: KS Friday, Love, Story, Uncategorized | Tagged: as sure as the sun, country music, country music singer, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, freefallin' in love, honky tonk woman, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, society6.com/kerrisherwood, story, storyteller, studio melange, the melange | Leave a comment »

Complete The Trilogy [on DR Thursday]

Posted on July 5, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

Just before she passed away, Kerri and I rushed to illustrate and publish a trilogy of children’s books that Beaky had written years earlier. Beaky saw the first of her books published, Shayne. We held a release party and author reading of the first book. She was a rock star. Her first sale was to someone in The Netherlands and I teased her about being an international author. Beaky was both thrilled and ever humble. She died 18 days later while we were racing to lay out the pages of the second book in the trilogy. We published it, Shayne & The Yellow Dragon, soon after, for what would have been her 94th birthday.

the author

It’s been three years. Today would have been Beaky’s 97th birthday and we are certain she is tapping her foot wondering what is taking so long. So, we decided that it was time to complete the trilogy. The illustrations and scans are back on the table. In short order, someday very soon, we look forward to announcing the publication of Beaky’s third book, Shayne & The New Baby.

read Kerri’s blog post on Shayne

the creative team

www.kerrianddavid.com

shayne/shayne & the yellow dragon ©️ 2015 david robinson & kerri sherwood

Filed under: Art, Creativity, DR Thursday, Family, Heroes, Love, Possibility, Uncategorized | Tagged: Beaky, Beaky's Books, beakysbooks.com, children's books, dachsund, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, heart projects, illustrations, Kerri Sherwood, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, shayne, shayne trilogy, society6.com/davidrobinson, studio melange, the melange | Leave a comment »

Find Love Everywhere [on Two Artists Tuesday]

Posted on June 19, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

In a former life I had an office and on the wall of the office was a poster with the English alphabet as found on butterfly wings. Sometimes I think our only real purpose on this earth is to appreciate the utter beauty of it all. We do a shoddy job of it mostly but everyone has their moments of recognition. A sunset. A mountain top. The color of a cardinal. I loved my poster and put it on the wall to remind me that nature is infinitely more beautiful, expansive and powerful than I can contain. My job is to open my eyes. To see. When I needed a reminder of natural order in the midst of my square-taupe-office-with-grey-metal-desk, I’d look at those glorious wings.

Kerri and I walk almost every day. We find peace in walking and have favorite trails, some for the morning walks and some for the end of the day. When we travel to new places, we always find and explore the trails. We have been known to walk late at night. We have ventured into the silence of a midnight snow. On our walks, Kerri is famous for finding treasures. My job is to tote them home. Most of the treasures are hearts. Heart rocks, heart leaves, heart shaped knots, or, like this treasure, the heart found in an acorn. Our house is filled with heart-treasure. Each, like the wings, is a reminder to open my eyes and see the wonder, the love of it all.

read Kerri’s blog post on FIND LOVE EVERYWHERE

www.kerrianddavid.com

Filed under: Love, Two Artists Tuesday, Uncategorized | Tagged: david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, heart, inner peace, Kerri Sherwood, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, love, nature, peace, society6.com/twoartists, studio melange, symbol, the melange, the power of nature, Two Artists Tuesday | Leave a comment »

Share Fatherhood [on DR Thursday]

Posted on June 14, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

MASTERshared fatherhood II close up copy

a morsel of Shared Fatherhood II

This is what I believe:

People write words and books.

People make distinctions, create borders, build walls.

People make rules and laws.

People make judgments and justifications.

People make agendas. People make politics.

People exploit other people.

‘God,’ like ‘love,’ is a word we use to point to something boundless. Love, like all the Gods, is beyond comprehension. That is why the two words, God and Love, are often synonymous. They point to that which cannot be defined, contained or limited.

If you hear that ‘God has written’ or that God has ‘placed boundaries’, like gender distinctions, on ‘love’ then you can be certain of one thing: someone has either confused the writings of people for the unfathomable expression of love or there is an agenda in play. Either way, the limit has nothing to do with Love or God.

read Kerri’s blog post on SHARED FATHERHOOD

www.kerrianddavid.com

Shared Fatherhood II, 25.25 x 40.25IN, mixed media on panel

Filed under: DR Thursday, Identity, Love, Uncategorized | Tagged: agendas, boundless, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, fatherhood, gods, judgments, Kerri Sherwood, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, laws, limits, love, Rules, shared fatherhood, society6.com/davidrobinson, studio melange, the melange | Leave a comment »

Be A Pirate [on Chicken Marsala Monday]

Posted on June 11, 2018 by davidrobinsoncreative

When we were little, for our birthdays, my dad would disappear into the basement and make magical constructions from boxes. Squealing, we’d race down the stairs and jump into the airplanes and trains and mazes he created. When it was his night to cook, we feasted on fantastically shaped pancakes, the chef taking rowdy and enthusiastic requests from his diners. There were snowball fights and broken windows (“DAD DID IT!” we shouted to mom, throwing him under the bus). There were midnight raids with a squirt gun dubbed The Green Avenger.

Being a pirate came naturally to him. And, consequently, I and my brothers and sister have no doubt where our treasure is.