In passing...Gretchen Ney Laugier 

  

It was
 the early 90s                                                              

"On French Beaches Women are Topless"GNL 92

Life was

An adventure.

Three thousand mile

 away.

How curious
to find someone
from my own backyard
here.

At the front desk
of the hotel
in Oaxaca
The Philadelphia Inquirer
was her calling card.
“Hello”,she said,”I’m Gretchen. I’m a 55 year old single grandmother.”

Born and raised
in New Hope
an artist father
a loving mother
Gretchen was                                               
a force of nature.

We forged a friendship

"Zapatista Women" GNL 99

Together                                                      

We explored

Bowman's Tower/taken by my son at age 5

Margaritas
in the zocalo.
Ancient ruins
with steep stone steps.
The dangers of
siesta time
wandering
in The Cerro del Fortin
Snow white hair
Laughing blue eyes
Gretchen
wanted to
free Tibet
stop all wars
and ride off
into the sunset
with Subcomandante  Marcos
She was
an artist
an activist
a mentor

If I complained
about someone
She said,”Karen,you know what Buddhists say?People like that are put in our path to teach us patience.”
pause
“Oh those damn Buddhists.”

My son came along
and every visit
was an adventure
Meeting                                                                         
 in the middle                                                          
of a bridge
on a blustery March day                    
Driving
winding back roads
to see
praying mantis
and hang gliding planes                                                    
Visiting the Nakashimas                                       
when the dogwood
 bloomed.

Gretchen 

once told me
at age 18
she moved to Paris                      
and worked
weaving
with
 Isadora Duncan’s brother.

Gretchen was adventure.
She lived life
on her terms.

In the
the end
she wrote
her own obituary.

I think
of her                                              

Shawl design by Raymond Duncan

often.

The other day,
I wandered through
an exhibition
“Chic Shawls of the Early Twentieth Century”
In passing
I noticed
a shawl
with
a motif
of
Greek mythology
Designed in Paris
by
Raymond Duncan
Brother of Isadora Duncan

And I knew
Gretchen
was
there.