The 45th Parallel

Salem. The name alone packs a powerful punch. Immediately my mind conjures up the Salem witch trials of Puritan Massachusetts. Ironic, as the birth of the word Salem comes from its Hebrew mother, Shalom, meaning peace. Salem in the late 1600’s was anything but peaceful. Suspicion, hysteria, betrayal and fear gripped the day.

But the name has an even earlier history than the 17th century. On a hill in the heart of Zion stands a city. jeruSALEM. As the “new Jerusalem” symbolizes any idealized city, Utopia, it means heaven to many. It is a sacred place to more than a few Jewish people, Muslims and Christians, and even though the pulse of the word means peace, this holy city in the Middle East is again, anything but.

The sister to Shalom is Shalem, meaning perfect, whole, full. I wonder if the Kalapuyans, the Native Americans who inhabited Oregon before the invention of the white man, knew that definition because they named the area Chemeketa, meaning “meeting or resting place.”

I had none of this in mind when Groom and I traveled an hour north to Oregon’s capital on Saturday. Neither did I feel anything unusual as we crossed the 45th parallel that runs through the city limits, that legendary halfway point between the North Pole and the Equator. But that’s really what this week’s entry is about, the location between my equator (umm, let’s call it my belt buckle) and my North Pole (my head) which is…my heart.

The 45th parallel, the 4th chakra, the heart.

I’ve just experienced an amazing realization and then manifestation, which has left me speechless. Well, not that you can tell, since one sentence follows another. But as I sit here clacking away at the computer keys, there is a whole lot of silence. Much space in between. I’m trying to find the words. Oh, here they come.

I ran across a great definition of progress in a jewelry magazine. The gist is that progress is a moving target, it cannot be measured standing still. It involves travel. In order to make progress, there has to be movement from one point to another. For example, a person cannot be judged by only one piece of jewelry (oh, but wait, they will be…stay tuned!), but by the progress made from one piece to the next and then the one after that.

Progress is dynamic, in other words, it is not static. Too many of us judge ourselves by only one coordinate, a lone word, a single action.

But Saturday, after a mere 13 months of planning, Groom and I finally made it to Salem right on the appointed dot of 10am. We met up with the In-laws for a day of Thrifting. The weather cooperated brilliantly, offering a sky of antique blue, and we did exactly what the tourism signs told us to do, “Explore downtown, eat & shop downtown.”

If you’ll be patient, this quilt of paragraphs will all come together by the end. Many of you are familiar with the Z0L0 vignette. Briefly, a lovely man, a 64-year old friend and pen pal of mine misread my handwriting and thought the date of 2010 said “Z0l0.” He quizzed and questioned me, wondering what on earth Z0L0 was. I had no idea. He said I had to know because I was the one who had written it. Story short, we’ve all been laughing ever since he realized the mistake and I’ve nicknamed him Z0L0 and he’s been calling me the Z0L0 Queen.

My New Year’s resolution for 2010, Z0l0, is to step out of my comfort zone and try new things. I was wearing this frame of mind when I received a lovely invitation from the Salem Art Association to create a piece of jewelry for the silent auction during their annual benefit, Clay Ball.

Creating something to donate is not the new part, for many organizations make that request. It was accepting their invitation to attend the event that rattled my cage of comfort. You would think dressing up and attending a fancy shmancy ball would be right up my alley, but er, um, hobbing and nobbing with the moneyed crowd, well?

It was a benefit, after all, and who do they want as guests in their well appointed ballroom but people who can afford the “per plate fee” and bid thousands of dollars against each other in the name of fun and philanthropy?

I knew it would be a stretch, but I decided I wanted to do it anyway. The theme for this year’s Clay Ball was Traveling by Starlight. Always one for a theme, I selected a stamp with, can you guess, a globe shaped like a heart and proceeded to embellish it with appropriate beads and charms.

The date finally arrived. Having to traverse the 66.2 miles of asphalt anyway, we made plans to thrift with the in-laws and then transform like Cinderella to attend the Ball. As we stepped into the Salem Conference center that evening, the atmosphere was at once charming and lively. The “fun and festive cocktail attire” made for great people watching, and by the time we climbed the stairs and perused the items up for bid, we were in a great mood.

And then we saw our piece. The little itty bitty “Traveling by Starlight” postage stamp pin. Yes, we were invited to donate what we do, but we had a bit of a shock seeing one of our jewelry pieces out of context instead of in a full booth like we’re used to. It was very sobering.

Why? Because while we were included in the realm of the donating, participating artists, we became aware of just how small our energy is. Our pin was the littlest object up for bid as well as the lowest opening bid.

Debbie Leahy, the Director of the Salem Art Fair & Festival, has been an amazing influence upon us, encouraging us to return to school and learn metalsmithing skills to expand what we do. Heeding her sage advice, we rearranged our whole lives, including our home, to make room for the classes and a different kind of studio.

At that moment, standing in the middle of the swirl of Saturday night, I set an intention. An intention to create a piece of jewelry (with the new skill set) that I can donate to next year’s Clay Ball that will knock my own socks off.

It was a good idea to have a smaller, less expensive piece available for people to bid on, to create something for those without access to huge funds, but I also realized I was at the very shallow end of the pool and I want to go deeper.

If the micro mirrors the macro, I looked into that mirror and saw how tiny my impact and energy was. While it kinda bummed me out, it was also a terrific marker, another coordinate in measuring my progress. Gosh darn nit, I am progressing, moving, growing and evolving. Instead of feeling like the smallest amoeba, the lowest on the totem pole, I decided to interpret the experience as inspiring.

That was the amazing realization. And now comes the manifestation. Deciding I did not need to feel puny, tempting as it was, I chose to plant a seed. Like Jack and the Beanstalk, I had no idea how quickly it could grow. Within 24 hours of planting the intention of allowing my energy to expand, I received a mysterious phone call. I was instructed to drive down to the corner of 6th Avenue and Fillmore Street where the Tire Factory is located.

Oh what a delightful surprise! On the marquee was the message, “Z0L0 Queen exists in Eugene.” My friend had gone to the effort of persuading the owner to display his message. I am so touched. Who goes to that kind of trouble? Who thinks like that?

It slowly occurred to me, that while I was thinking my energy was so small and ineffective it might need life support, somebody was going to the effort to announce my presence to the entire town. He also wrote a poem:

PRESS RELEASE by Ken Lee

You are all aware of the Eugene Slug Queen

At most openings and events she can be seen
Real Royalty has arrived in Eugene
She has emerged this year as the Z0L0 Queen!

When did the Royal Woman really appear?
Queen Z0L0 accepted her crown just this year
She’s no rookie to royalty though
In her veins, Queenly blood doth flow.

No princesses are needed, she goes solo
Remember the name dear folks –She’s Queen Z0L0
The Slug Queen is jealous of her, you see
Because by the next parade, she’ll be in the lead.

Queen Z0L0 is honored to lead the parade
The Slime Queen was invented, Queen Z0L0 was made.
When the REAL Queen goes by, just tip your beer
This is 2010 and its Z0L0 year!


Wow, as I said, this has rendered me speechless. Sort of. I am more gobsmacked, humbled, honored, delighted, and I realized, by him presenting me with a crown (my North Pole, my head, my 7th chakra) I encountered the halfway point, my own 45th parallel, intersecting at the city limits of my heart, and I report to you, at this moment, it is filled with peace.

Shalom.