Preface by Lidia Rozmus
Mole Hill is not an official geographical name. But there’s nothing wrong with being called Mole Hill. The name seems appropriate, especially if you compare it to, say, the Rocky Mountains. It’s really pretty small.
The shape of Mole Hill is fairly regular: up and down. The top is nice, somewhat flat; it’s a good place to stand and look around. It is not touched by the clouds, but sometimes it looks like it is. In fog it is very romantic and “Japanese.” Mole Hill is functional. It serves as a health club for joggers and provides fun for children in the wintertime. It’s good for somebody who likes to be on top of things and great for me, born in the Sudetic Mountains of Poland. ( Illinois is a beautiful state, but pretty flat.) I see Mole Hill every day from my apartment: white in winter, fresh green in spring, purple in summer, and brownish in autumn.
Topographically, Mole Hill stand almost on the shores of Big Bear Lake and Little Bear Lake (both names real and proper). They are part of Century Park in Vernon Hills, Lake County, Illinois, about thirty miles north of Chicago. I know these thirty miles because I drive to and from work in the city. One day when I was visiting Mole Hill a little boy asked me, “What are you writing?” I answered, “I’m writing and painting what I see.” He looked around, then at me, and said, “Nothing special.” Yes, nothing special yet so special. I like to share with people this “nothing special” in words and painting.
Sumi-e is the Japanese art of black ink painting. Haibun is a narrative with haiku included. I put sumi-e and haibun together on one page and call it “haibun-ga.” This sounds funny to me, in both English and Polish, but that’s what it’s all about.
one breath
one brush
stroke one |
