Moss Creek Journal: 2013

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

This is what goes through my head this time of year.

40 minutes of music. A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

herb brokering

1990 Shaliach members top to bottom:

Mrs. Jan Marxhausen (Missouri)

Kenyon Hathaway (Minnesota)

Ase Lill Frigstad (Norway)

Eddie Aliaga (California)

Reiko Shimizu (Osaka, Japan)

Tim Illick (Maryland)

Nino Patino (Bolivia, South America)

Mr. Karl Marxhausen (Nebraska)

Nine month tour map, below.

My wife Jan and I met with Herb Brokering (ABOVE) in Minneapolis, when our music team sang there in 1990.

He was a friend of my father, Reinhold Marxhausen. Both men were into the NEW and the FRESH of God when it came to Lutheran worship. He was on the faculty at Holden Village .(http://www.hymnary.org/person/Brokering_HF?tab=tunes) and has several poetry recordings in their audio collection (http://audio.holdenvillage.org/node/679).

I found this 10 minute video on Youtube of him reading poetry.

This week I began reading his collection of poems, from a book my father once owned. It is amazing how something penned 46 years ago can speak to me right now, in Carrollton, Missouri. Here is that poem from "Lord, If --" book, 1977, Concordia Publishing House. After which, our my own impressions.

Lord,
if
by Moses You put Your hand on waters
to part them,
and if You lower Your voice into the deep of oceans,
raise and call those drowned,
then
You can get through to me
with Your hand and voice
and power.
(herb brokering)

In the privacy of my mind,
this same Voice, that moved Moses to lead others,
intrudes with fresh phrases of His arrival
from this handful of young believers.
Overwhelming my senses,
clenched eye muscles squeeze hot tears,
seismic interruption,
here and
here,
yes, you are at work. Yes,
ripping into my awareness.
breathless.
(karl marxhausen)

Saturday, November 23, 2013

holden village memories

Since I was part of the Super 8 Film generation, this 20 minute film by James Nagel captures my earliest memories of Holden Village, ABOVE (courtesy James Nagel, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjvZxtdvesI&feature=share&list=FL8SgbA1VxwAKIskpu5LWBEwm, accessed Nov 23, 2013)

I think my brother Paul, Dorris and Reinhold, and I visited Holden twice when I was under their roof. Dad was probably did a presentation while we were there. All I remember was the dusty trails, hiking the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, the two hour boat ride up on Lake Chelan, volleyball after supper, the rock museum, hot hot saunas, and cooling off in a cement tub of frigid mountain water, how hot the earpieces of my glasses were, the evening Jacuzzi pools, the sing-a-long at the family style meals, new words to Edelweiss and other show tunes.

Started in 1962, the US government sold the Howe Sound Company mining estate to Wes Prieb and the Lutheran church for one dollar, so the story goes.(http://www.ask.com/wiki/Holden_Village,_Washington?o=2800&qsrc=999&ad=doubleDown&an=apn&ap=ask.com, accessed Nov 22, 2013)

In the summer of 1976, a sophomore at the University of Nebraska, I rode a bus from Seward, Nebraska to Chelan, Washington by myself. I worked two months as a volunteer cook, doing food preparation, given room and board. I met Scott Burlington. We both liked piano blues. Also met Verlon Brown, a poet then, an actor now. http://verlonbrown.com/VerlonBrown/Bio.html, accessed Nov 23, 2013.

On my 21th birthday, I stepped off the boat in Chelan, penniless, old enough to be at a bar, but looked too young to be legal. Stayed at a motel, lived off a bag of carrots, and got on a return bus ride the next morning.

More on the Village here, http://www.holdenvillage.org/
More contemporary video by Will Chiles, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt0ubZM7N7U, accessed 23, 2013) BELOW

Another video here http://youtu.be/Q5iRc8jWilE by Captain Clark with more details.
We never visited in the winter time, EVER, but Esme did, http://youtu.be/pMIpFuEERC8.
That is just too much snow.

Friday, November 22, 2013

tony montanaro mime memories

It was while I was a sophomore at Concordia High School in Seward, Nebraska that Tony Montanaro came and did a performance. It was at the new drama stage in the basement of the new Music building on the campus of then Concordia Teacher College, now Concordia University. Tony did a mime tug of war and created the illusion of an invisible wall. His name came to my mind today.

Tug of War from Karen Montanaro on Vimeo.(accessed Nov 22, 2013)

I remember doing a mime for a drama class or an English class in Becker Hall, where our high school classes took place. Hal Whelply was the librarian and also taught drama. My sketch involved pretending to open a door, close a window, and open screw lid jars. I think it was in an upstairs classroom in 1969.

The Wall Mime from Karen Montanaro on Vimeo (accessed Nov 22, 2013)

More on Montanaro,

http://vimeo.com/2373884, accessed Nov 19, 2013)

My freshman year began in the fall of 1968, after I graduated from St. John's Lutheran School. (My fifth grade classmates, courtesy of mike sylwester, http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikesylwester/sets/72157619123660048/).

In 1969 I was a sophomore. And, in 1970 to 1971, when I was a junior abstentia, my parents took our family on the road for a one year excursion around the United States. My father was booked to do art workshops at schools and churches. That trip was sponsored by Aid Association for Lutherans and Concordia Teachers College. It was during his sabbatical leave. We lived in a Winnebago mobile home for one year, making four loops of the U.S., coming home for a two week break between touring. We travelled to every state, with the exception of Maine, Alaska, and Hawaii.

Saturday, November 2, 2013

dorris travels and stays in hotels these days she reports from her black leather couch

Words. My mother raised me to check the dictionary for the spelling of words. She said I was coming home from school with some new hybrid of a word, a new compound word, which brought a smile to her smile. She would point me to the HUGE open dictionary on the wooden podium in the dining room.
She loved to compose her thoughts. Often typing on the manual typewriter in the basement. Her letters to the Seward County Independent editor. Saving trees. Keeping track of bills in the State legislature. City planning. Zoning. And sending out letters of news from our family in Seward, Nebraska to her parents in Blackburn, Missouri. I have saved her letters to me when I lived in Galena, Illinois, with questions in my life as a college student, living out on my own in the real world, dealing with friends and employers who did not live the same faith walk as me.

These days Dorris spends her time traveling and staying in motels, she says when I call her on the phone, to her apartment in Lincoln, Nebraska. My composing of thoughts, my interest in research, my joy of reading, comes from her love of consuming the daily newspaper, her love of reading books, her knowledge from so many life experiences, which she shared with me. Her influence has been great on her first born son, who is writing this reflection right now.
My sister-in-law has more thoughts on Dorris these days. Read http://step.marxhausen.net/2013/10/song-and-dance-routine.html Thank you Kim.
Her journal is at http://step.marxhausen.net/

what teachers make

Taylor Mali has a flare for poetry and making adults think. As a teacher myself, I see my students learn and grow where I work. It is a privilege to be on the front row of learning, to see boys and girls grow in knowledge. Thank you Taylor for this video.

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

joy spills

a lesson is being built for my youth wednesday night. in the days leading up to it, my mind feels like it has been hidden in his cloak. keeping my thoughts still, staying within the boundaries. (double click to see details enlarged)

my prayer is this:

as a grownup i struggled with bitterness issues, personal choices to hang on to karl grudges. And then god came in and brought release to personal pain...in tears and healing, and with it, his peace and new joy. this tune came to me in 1991 with new impressions laid out top of my being. he restores my insecurities, my pain, my bitterness. he forgives when i ask for his help. and his tears and joy are worth all the counselling and prayers. (beloved video below)

so, my doodles embellish the hand-lettered song sheets that the youth and I sing from.

new calluses are forming on fingers that haven't held metal guitar strings for a while

a tune that comes to me when I am loading the suburban with lunch containers from the high school or when I am driving home after work (video next)

when I first scoped out the youth room one sunday morning

two songs came to mind: "beauty for ashes" & "joy is a flag."

these premonitions and impressions have me all excited.

i am seeing living water flow from students as they open themselves
and share the impressions that come.

The portions I journal for myself remind me
that
this is really
happening.

a grownup can be broken open
and amazed each time
this precious entity presses in.

Two minute medley. Beauty for ashes (Bob Manzano, 1979)

Joy is a flag flown high from the castle of my heart (Author unknown)

this zone blesses my day

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

he was my design teacher at unl

Since I am a subscriber to Kietchel Fine Art, this Youtube interview link was sent to me, and I decided to embed it here. What Jacobshagen says about being out in the elements resonates with me. He was out there doing it long before I was ever interested in painting.

Keith Jacobshagen was my design teacher at the University of Nebraska between 1974 and 1976. One Saturday I was sitting on the floor at the Kietchel gallery, staring at and drinking in a large sky Jacobshagen had painted. Man, oh man. It was a good 15 minutes of studying it with my eyeballs, and worth every second of it. I am delighted that he still paints and keeps it fresh.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

movie brings back marker memories

My brother had some old Super 8 films transferred to video. He compressed them on a CD for me. Some were action stories with live actors. Some were stop action animations that were shot on the basement floor an few frames at a time. While watching the animations, I REMEMBERED my LOVE for magic markers.

When I was in junior high and later as a high school freshman I loved to color. Double click on photos to enlarge.

Sixth grade pencil on notebook paper at st.john's lutheran school, seward, nebraska

Full page marker on 11" x 8" cardstock 1969

As a freshman I took index cards and made designs for the birthday of classmates at concordia secondary laboratory school, Seward, Nebraska. The background of the above card gives you an idea of the patterns I used.

So, one thing led to another and this week I have been decorating a dozen manila folders at my day job in Chillicothe. There was cutting of construction paper, glue, and permanent colored markers.

One student asked to see a design I was working on. He told me the folder colors needed to be taped up in the room for everyone to see.
That gave me an idea, and I made a poster to encourage the class, below. Double click for closer details.

Then, I made posters to decorate the youth room in Carrollton, below.

Contagious. Is it art?
It is what I am doing and it is lots of fun and making new great memories as well.
Last, I remember what Jean Howard of Prairie Village told me about Picasso. How he was doing many styles when creating. This is ME too. LOVING IT, being it.

Thank you teachers for this assignment.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

excursions - august 2 to 28 - lincoln, nebraska

On display now at Burkholder Project, 719 P Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.
Contact Anne Burkholder @ anburkholder@earthlink.net
All paintings were begun outdoors en plein air.
Double click on images to see enlarged.

Study of Trees and Sky,

acrylic on canvas panel in 10" x 12" frame,

image size 8" x 10"

signature lower left, $ 375

Pond on Farm #2, Schnares,

acrylic on panel in 11" x 14" frame,

image size 7" x 10"

signature lower right, $ 375

Field and Bluff,

acrylic on 11" x 14" cradled panel,

signature lower right, $ 375