October is Breast Cancer Awareness month
To live, love, work and play longer: for breast cancer victims, time needs to be suspended. This hourglass represents the energy, science and spirit that is funneled to cure and help eradicate breast cancer.
faith ~ gene therapy
laughter ~ lasers
meditation ~ clinical trials
spirituality ~ chemotherapy
prayer ~ surgery
friendship ~ radiation
Suspend Time was one of the sculptures for the VESSEL SHOW in 2011 and I knew just the woman to create the woodwork for this piece.
I met Maureen Simpson in 2006 and knew that she had survived breast cancer around 2000. I also knew that she had a new passion in her retired life: creating exquisite lathe work pieces. Beautiful, miniature spindles as Christmas decorations were one of her signature things.
Originally the sculpture was supposed to be circular top and bottom, similar to a typical hourglass. I gave Maureen a couple of ideas as to the size and complexity of the spindle I was looking for – but when I drew the designs for her I did them as a single sample, one end different from the other – just as suggestions.
Imagine my surprise when it came back to me, exquisitely made but not symmetrical! I was staggered and speechless – for about a minute – but then I knew exactly how my idea could be adapted.
In the end though, it was not Maureen to did the lathe work: it was her companion Don Moore, who shared this wood-working passion. Maureen’s cancer had metastasized to brain cancer and she was unable to work the lathe.
I have survived cervical cancer and breast cancer, Maureen did not survive.
So this delicate piece of art took on a special personal meaning….as more and more of my friends have gone through and challenged this dreadful battle.
