LUNA: the season of big moths

last summer 

i taught a class in eco or contact printing on special papers

at the morgan conservatory.

something really neat happened;

two sisters traveled 

all the way to cleveland

from maine

to take my class.

they were lovely,

really focused, 

though if i remember correctly one 

was pretty under the weather with a sinus infection.

these two returned to maine

where penny got to work printing.

this is the result:

Luna Moon by Penelope Hall 

exquisite details 

 ~a carousel book~

deep woods 

penny says: 

"the book, including text is copyrighted 2013.  The paper was dyed here at home. I started as soon as I got home from Cleveland. Interesting, since I think you told us about the different palettes of color you get in different geographic locations. This was late summer for a lot of it and I used leaves that I think had a lot of tannins in them."

 ~~~

i saw penny in portland in april:

she brought LUNA MOON for me to see and hold

and it's even finer than the photos say.

it's really perfect.

the moth figures 

are floating through the great northern forest:

maine.

~~~

my book, actias luna,

made several years ago, 

holds a conversation with penny's book.

it's a poem 

about a moment

when i found two dying lunas

spent after mating

one june morning, in the weedy border next to my house.

i added a beaded luna 

purchased from a penobscot woman

in bar harbor, maine

which really works with my daylily paper 

and the poem.

sometimes books, like people,

have conversations over wondrous things,

like, perhaps,

a full moon-lit night 

in june

and the drive to live, LIVE!

beautiful

 for what reason?

circling,

like the moon.

thank you penny, for permission

to share this.

and thank you for letting me hold,

and enjoy

 it.