This is my son's acceptance speech as the outstanding student in the Communications Major
graduating from his University. I put it here because it speaks to me as an artist, very directly:

As the first recipient of this award I lay the following twofold charge upon those who are to come: The first charge: it is attention to perfection in every detail that elevates the mundane to the extraordinary, therefore, never compromise on quality. No mater the day, hour, or circumstance, pursue the highest value of your art form. To awe and to inspire are goals achieved by accomplishing where others fail, and failure comes far more often from the mind then from the means. Remember then that the hardships of the moment of creation are transitory, but the finished product will remain for so long as you care to keep it. Therefore, never compromise on quality and you will view your finished product with pride, and without regret.
The second charge: Produce. This university endows its students with a unique combination of practical spirituality and professional knowledge. This perspective is a rare and precious commodity, and it is a disservice to this university, to your education, and to the world at large, to not put it to use. In the field of art, whether it be narrative or static, there is no measure of success save the finished product. Therefore, produce, and do not stop. We are the inheritors of the tradition of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, and Guru Deva. Let that wisdom shine

Why donkeys?

Donkeys walk down the road.
They carry the load. They pass the
psychic or religious, scenic or secular
things there are to see.

Everyone has a donkey. My own
is rebellious but strong
with immense endurance.
Mothers and men carry children
Mortgages, stones, crosses,
colored blankets, cacti, spouses.

Children carry their families.

The donkey walks up the hill,
around the bend under the load.
He sees many things.
He eats thistles.
He has huge ears and eyes.
He makes a sound like a loud guffaw.
Hee Haw.

Painted tile mural

Grapes and border

by Karla Christensen

2006

A quetzal bird flies overhead

The donkey carries the load

On the one side church, crosses,

Man-made village

On the other side, it seems

the earth is full of the old gods.

Folk Art Tile

Mask Maker in Venice

On earth glass seemed the closest thing to real alchemy, being made of the body earth, cooked molten and poured, still liquid, into a clear hard thing able to hold sky, the opposite of that other alchemy, when something of the far regions of spirit becomes matter.