Foundations Revealed Contest 2021: The Photos

Competition entries are live! *begin hyperventilating* Now I can finally share the professional photos of the whole costume. I asked my friend Shirelle (@captured.by.shirelle on IG) to take pictures for me. She picked a regional park near us and I love what she was able to do with all the giant piles of rocks and trees! She perfectly captured the mood I was hoping for. 

In choosing the Weaver Girl as my literary inspiration I wanted to highlight a character who was non-Western, and also a mother. Being a mom is one of the hardest things I've ever done (and am still doing, obviously); my first year as a mom was incredibly lonely, but it got so much better once I was sleeping through the night and found my mom crew. It's always easier doing hard things with a community. To that end, I appreciated being able to work with Shirelle, another mom, for the shoot, and being able to support her photography business. 

I also wanted to bring in the writing talent of one of my best mom friends. She and I talk regularly about making time to be creative even when our days are overrun with dirty dishes, constant snack requests, and reading the same book over and over until we have all the words memorized and it's so nice to have someone to commiserate with. I commissioned her to write a new poem to go with my entry (which is based on a centuries-old poem by Qin Guan in the Song dynasty). 

But here's a modern poetic take to go with my modern costume interpretation of the Weaver Girl. I hope you love her lovely, evocative words as much I do. 

Rivers and Roads (The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl)

by Jeanine Terasaki

I could spend my days cursing 

The river of sky that 

Ripped and roared between us 

That sent us scattered across the ends of the heavens 

I could spend my days 

Casting diamond tears across the great expanse 

Hoping even one ripple might reach your hand 

(Could anyone fault me 

Who would dare cast a stone) 

But, draped in our warm memories 

Spy me instead, my love 

Across the impossible divide 

Breathing deeply this absence of you 

Soft hands collecting stardust shimmer 

Piecing together bits of moonshine as I go 

Finding every small way to catch the light 

To bid the magpies come 

And bring you home to me once more

Thanks for following along on this journey with me! You can see Part 1: The Inspiration, and Part 2: The Process here on the blog if you missed it, and you can see all the entries for the Foundations Revealed 2021 Competition on their website (I'm on the last page of the intermediate entries). If you're a paying member, maybe you'll be inclined to vote for my entry? :D