High Quality
Open the downloaded document, and select print from the file menu (PDF reader required).
J. Davis Studio
Survival of the InnerSpirit.
[Type the document subtitle]
Robin Brown Davis2/26/2010
Once upon a time, in a land far away, lived a sad little boy, whoselife was saved by unseen heroes;his mother
’
s strong faithand his love for creating art.
SURVIVAL of the
inner
SPIRIT
By Robin Brown Davis, co-owner of J. Davis Studio
My husband, John, riding behind his cousin in 1961.My
husband’s
line of ceramic
“
inner
Spirit Rattles
”
have beencrazy popular for almost 15 years. People have an uncanny emotionalconnection to them. The first thing people notice is their beauty. Then somemention their perfect palm size, or that they
’
re drawn to the tactile texture of their surface. Nearly everyone tells us that the gentle sound helps them stayfocused and be mindful of the present moment.But many are passionate about the rattles stirring a sense whichcan be neither seen nor heard; a sense of peace.There
’
s no doubt in my mind this feeling is real. I believe there isa unique energy springing from our geography which maybe, just maybemight be held inside the thin shell of each handmade
inner
Spirit Rattle.Perhaps it
’s
a kind of aura that somehow seeps in, or
maybe it’s
a stickyessence picked up while being made by hand in our desolate and far flungpart of Texas. Big Bend is a rugged part of the world that has a way of reinforcing faith, dredging up an unknown inner strength, and of sparking adeep appreciation of even the smallest things.
This is a true story of survival:
John Davis was born May 15, 1955. He started working withceramics when he was a very young boy. He learned from his grandmother who was a hobby ceramic artist.
John’s
roots run deep in the small sleepy far west Texas townwhere he was born and raised. The same town where his father was bornand raised, and where his father
’s father
settled as a young man. His
grandpa was a cowboy, John’s dad delivered bread
around the Big Bendarea.We live in the rural Big Bend area, inside the massiveChihuahuan Desert. The surrounding land is under populated, vast andpeaceful. We have mountains, but few trees. Some say the landscape lookslike the surface of the moon. Alpine, Texas is extraordinarily remote; 150 miles from the closestcommercial airport, 250 from the next. You have to be very self sufficient tolive in such an isolated area. It helps to also be determined, resilient, andcreative, not unlike the pioneers and the Buffalo Soldiers that helpedestablish this Wild West frontier.Lots of people compare Alpine to the fictional Mayberry R.F.D. Atsix years old, John was as happy as Opie Taylor on the black and white TVshow. John used to ride around the streets of town on the back of a gentlehorse with his best friend (and cousin), Gary Lee. The horse would lie downon the ground to allow the boys to climb on top of his muscular back. Butthen Gary Lee was crushed and killed by a falling gas station sign. Thosedays are now a blur to John
, but I’m told
he was very sad for a long time.But then things finally got better. But then things got worse. Muchworse. John had just turned 13 when his dad was killed. John was with him. A drunken cowboy shot his father after he had told the man to leave theriding arena located on their land. His mom and little brother and sister were
with John’s
grandparents at a rodeo three hours away. John was alone.He had to testify in the trial. The case was moved from Alpine tothe dusty town of Ft. Stockton, 60 miles away, where the young man
’s
family had political connections.
John’s
mother, Faye Davis, was notallowed in the courtroom with John. Being on the stand must have beenawful, but surely not as awful as when he was told his
father’s
killer wouldnot be going to prison.John and his dad.John said he was numb for a long time. Fortunately for him, hehas a mother with a strong faith. She taught him and his siblings to havecompassion for the man who the children saw as a monster who hadrobbed them of a father. Without even knowing
it, John’s
mother was afierce hero. She empowered her young children with the only weaponpowerful enough to slay their unseen demons; the power of forgiveness.
Add a Comment
JDavisStudioleft a comment