Gifts from the Streets
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Hello Friends, If you’ve read my newsletter for any length of time, or follow me on social media, you already know I’m all about going for walks and the small gifts I encounter: A rain drop on a rose petal. A friendly cat. Street art. Crows in flight. A fallen leaf… Well, a couple of weeks ago, the streets gifted me with lamps. One thing you may not know about me is that I love art and color and that is reflected in how I design interior spaces. I’ve collected art since I was a teenager, and as I am now in my late 50s, this means my walls are covered. My household also has a lot of books! I had two bedside lamps bought in a big box store years ago. They started out as silver, but I spray painted them black a few years back. They weren’t thrilling, but you know, they did their intended job. Then, on a walk, what did I spy on a walk with a friend? Two gorgeous crystal lamp bases on the sidewalk! They’re the type I call “grandma lamps." Turns out they were made by Lausitzer in East Germany, likely in the 1950s. I carried them home, gave them a good cleaning, found a couple of lamp shades, and set them up. Looking at the light shining on the glass makes me happy. Why am I telling this story? Because for me, it is further proof that as long as we’re open to them, small gifts are everywhere. That knowledge carries me through, even when the world seems at its toughest. I’m grateful for the gifts from the streets, and grateful for the gift of you, too. Best wishes — Thorn News:Hurricane Helene: If you have anything to spare, here is one vetted locals-for-locals fund organized by street medics and activists to help those who lost everything in North Carolina: Venmo: @AppMedSolid and Cash App: $Streets1de Please put "flood support" in the description. This is the last chance to vote for my You Are the Spell oracle deck. It’s up for Best Independent Deck by the World Divination Association! Love fantasy and science fiction? Kobo Books is having an online event to promote their monthly all-you-can-read book subscription. It’s only $7.99. You can purchase ebooks individually, too!
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T. Thorn Coyle
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Hello Friends, The day before the big US election, I went for a walk as usual. A flash caught my eye. It was a quartz crystal, resting on the sidewalk, autumn sun shining through it. The crystal cast a shadow that looked like a stretched out crescent moon. It was beautiful. After snapping a photo, I thanked the crystal—yes, I’m more than a bit of an animist—and settled it against a bit of moss, figuring it would be safer there. I keep thinking about that crystal. I keep thinking about how it...
Hello Friends, This newsletter is going out on Dia de los Muertes, just after Halloween and Samhain. I hope that however you honor this season you are well, and not feeling too overwhelmed. A lot of people are overwhelmed right now. I know that my own focus isn't the best, though I'm enjoying the rain that just arrived, and the novel I'm currently working on, as well as the two non-fiction projects currently on my desk. When I find my attention fracturing, or the doom scrolling beginning, I...