Book Fairy 100 Books Project Santa Fe, NM July 2010

I was very excited to read that Christine Mason Miller was looking for volunteers to sign up as "Book Fairies" in her 100 Books Project. I quickly typed up an email to her, explaining that I would be teaching and traveling a lot this summer and how badly I wanted to volunteer. Christine sweetly sent me a quick reply saying that she would love to have a book left in Santa Fe, NM.

My Dad, Tristan (my son) and I drove from So CA to The Artists' Nook in Colorado, where I would be teaching workshops in July. I've taught at The Artists' Nook for several years now and it's always one of my favorite places to venture to teach. The people there are truly wonderful and I consider them to be very dear friends. The other reason why I love teaching there is the drive. It's truly spectacular. If you ever have a chance to drive to (or from) Colorado, especially going over the Rocky Mountains, I would highly recommend it.

About 40 miles outside of Gallup, New Mexico, we were broadsided and purposely hit by a truck driver. It's a long story but to say that we were shaken up by it, is an understatement. (The state trooper on the site cited the truck driver for reckless driving. The driver admitted that he had hit us on purpose.) I was very happy to arrive in Santa Fe. The accident, however, threw a monkey wrench into our little plans. I wanted to explore Santa Fe more, but sadly, with the schedule that we had (I had to teach in CO that Friday), we weren't able to.

I had a few things that I wanted to do in Santa Fe. One, was to meet up with my friend, Krista. I met Krista in April at Frenzy Stamper in Scottsdale, when she flew there to take my two day workshop. Another thing that I wanted to do was to upgrade my cell phone for the first time *ever* and to buy a droid X (thinking that it would make my life easier with my online classes).
So, with the crazy schedule that we had and after the ridiculous accident, Krista graciously agreed to meet me at the cell phone store at 8:30 a.m. Thursday morning. (Anyone who would meet me that early in the morning at a silly cell phone store is top notch in my book).

Krista and I were shocked to see the amount of people at the store so early in the morning waiting to buy the new phone. (I had phoned ahead and the guy told me he didn't expect a line, so I figured getting there 30 minutes before they opened would be okay. After all, Santa Fe is not Los Angeles, where people probably camped out overnight to get the silly phone.) Turns out that the store decided to open their doors early that day and didn't tell anyone until the day before. Grrrr! We were in the store until 11:30 that morning.

The nice thing about spending three hours with someone standing and walking around a cell phone store is that you can do a lot of talking with each other. I had pondered for days over where I would leave the book. I asked friends and family where they thought I should leave it. I wanted the book to go somewhere special, to be found by someone who would get it, by someone who needed it. The more Krista and I talked, the more I got this swelling sensation that I needed to give the book to Krista. Krista was the one who needed it right now more so than anyone else in Santa Fe.

I started blabbing to her about the project. I asked her if she had read the latest issue of Somerset Studio and if she had seen the article on Christine's book project. I asked her if she had the book, if she knew Christine's work. She said that she was familiar with her work but that she didn't have the book. I started telling her how inspiring the book was to me and how it was one of my favorites. I told her that I thought that every artist needed a copy of it and how it had pulled me out of some dark days and made me think differently.

Krista was surprised when I asked if I could give the book to her. I explained that after our talk, I felt that she was the one who I was supposed to give the book to. I knew that as an artist, she would get it. She smiled and was extremely humble (and yet very excited) about accepting it. I suggested that when Krista was finished with the book that she could pass it on to others who she felt may benefit from reading it. After all, it is the kind of book that you gain a lot from and immediately want to share the experience with others.

"This is a Gift for You. Yes, You!"

Christine couldn't have written better words. It truly was a gift. A gift of being a Book Fairy. A gift of being with a friend for several hours. A gift of sharing. A gift of a moment.

Thank you, Christine. Thank you, Krista. Thank you, dear blog readers, for reading this Book Fairy's story.

Krista has posted her story here! Check it out!