Doing "right"

There is a lot of noise in our national system about "what has gone wrong":
--with the economy...pick your story
--with public institutions - wire-taps without warrants, secret operations that Congress has little/no knowledge of, etc.
--with formal religious groups - Catholic church child abuse scandal, etc.
--with major American companies - GM, Chrysler, AIG...pick your company

And not enough about what continues to go right. I stumbled across one such institution that is doing "right" every day...the deCordova Museum, Sculpture Park and School in Lincoln Massachusetts.

The Sculpture Park encompasses 35 acres of beautiful rolling woodlands and lawns, is the largest park of its kind in New England, and is open to the public every day of the year from dawn 'til dusk. It contains up to 75 artworks at any given time. The school is the largest non-degree studio art program in Massachusetts and offers programs in painting, photography, drawing, calligraphy and book arts, ceramics, design, fiber and decorative arts, jewelry and silversmithing, printmaking, and sculpture.

What is amazing out this institution is the story behind this jewel in Lincoln, Massachusetts. The museum, park and school are located on the former estate of Julian deCordova (1851-1945). Self educated and a son of a Jamaican merchant, he built an successful business empire. He was passionate about travel and art and collected "everything that took [his] fancy in every country of the world." In particular, he collect visual art objects because he believed visual arts served as a "medium" for self-improvement and enlightenment. As his collection grew, he began to envision a place where art would continue to educate and excite others beyond his lifetime. To realize that dream, he gave his summer estate to the town of Lincoln in 1930 with the stipulation that his estate would become a public museum of art following his death.

What touches me most about his story...in his success and wealth, he gave back...he realized and then shared his passion through this gorgeous oasis of visual art (see my facebook page photos) and provided access to everyone for all time. This is capitalism and entrepreneurism (is that a word?) done right!

Yesterday I felt like I had the opportunity to "touch" his passion through my eyes, my ears, my fingers, and my feet...how cool is that! I will be back!

RSS Feeds

I have a small...no maybe medium pet peeve. I am regularly reading other blogger's posts and if they offer an option to follow them and I am interested, I am raring to sign up. The pet peeve....many bloggers bury the RSS feed button on their site! It reminds me of trying to program my DVD player! My simple suggestion....make the button large and visible and put the button at the top of your website! Your readers will be thrilled!

1st week of July

First full week of July...hard to imagine that 6 months of 2009 are gone. I am sitting at my desk as I write this. It is a glorious morning in New England - the sun is shining, cool breezes are wafting from the Charles River to my open window, and my husband and I are engaging in our favorite Sunday morning routine of coffee and the New York Times. I am struck by this moment's opportunity to enjoy with no agenda, no to-do list, and only muted worries.

Nameste

He's gone

A special man passed away last night after a long battle with cancer...a husband, a dad to two great kids and the beloved master of Riley, a son, a musician, and a work colleague were only a few of the important roles he played for over 50 years. It is hard to imagine that he is gone...really gone. He was such a large presence.....at work, at church, with friends and most of all with his wife and kids. He was a man of integrity, commitment, curiosity, and with a heart of music. It sounds trite to say "he will be missed" but HE WILL BE MISSED! ...he was too young, still had much to contribute, many more songs to play and....