The gift of beginning anew is as constant as the change that it rides in on. We look now upon another year, closing down the last in gratitude and forgiveness and farewell. No one else holds your key to the threshold nor feels your inner shimmer of possibility and poise in this moment. The view is informative and priceless, offering a panorama where the wisdom of the past leans into the freedom of the future.

Nature is consistent in providing cycles and elements that influence perspective. This year’s holiday travels through Western Pennsylvania’s peaceful Laurel Highlands allowed time for a side trek to the well-known organic architectural wonder, Fallingwater. Frank Lloyd Wright designed this masterpiece as a private residence-retreat space for a Pittsburgh businessman in the 1930’s, and since then the entire world has come to enjoy the design as a symbol of bold innovation cradled in the natural world. It was a quiet day there for us; we enjoyed a nearly private visit in peace, softened nicely by the backdrop of rushing water.

Now welcoming the new year, I cannot help but look to this marvel on the edge of past and present. Emerging in strength from its noble precipice, the home’s windows are a token beacon, capturing well that point between being and becoming. A haven at once protected from and imbedded in the flow of the river below and the rocks and trees that were there long before, the rooms provide a sanctuary of function and form.

This treasured space made of light is a compelling symbol of balance, offering reflection on our place in the midst of Earth’s features and seasons. It hovers over and claims the niche, permitting the rush of the falls to define the mood in a suggestion of vital impermanence and release.    Creativity is born of these natural transitions of time and space, calling attention to communion with the ongoing pulse of potential.

A product of two lives, great vision and legacy and love of a place, this structure literally grew from the landscape. With boulders and roots inside and out, its foundation entwines with nature and speaks to the history and needs of generations. Continuing to serve in various ways, it has supported careers, entertaining and respite, and now wonder and education and preservation; the traditions continue to evolve.

Prior to the artist’s hand and the landowner’s request, the forest’s raw, remote temperament held this space without expectation. Likewise, we can feel our exquisite innate state of wholeness, blessing the past and breathing in the refreshing moment at hand. The value of honoring all that has come before, feeling the completion of another year and looking out to the unknown, presents this revered point of endless opportunity. A mantra of “progress, not perfection” helps to cleanse the mind of pressure and assumption, allowing a lighter continuation into the next phase.

This month’s issue highlights the freedom in letting stress fall away, offering methods and mindsets to unload the burdens that fragment the physical and emotional realms. Our personal space is also a sacred convergence of inner and outer environments, where we can work to refine the details and ingredients to create that most optimal individual ambiance.

                        ~Jacqueline

So whatever the beckoning, wherever the openings, be free and be bold in this new day. Honor the special setting that suits your design, collaborate with the natural world that surrounds you and seek to build on ground that nurtures the passion of your dreams.

            ~Kendra & Jacqueline, Co-Publishers