Fascinating Women: Suzanne Sperl

Take another peek into the life of this week’s Fascinating Woman, Suzanne Sperl. Some  of you know her as Sperlygirl, blogger and artist. You can find her blog HERE and her Etsy shop HERE.

Meri: I know many women are going to be fascinated by your life, so first tell us some of the background info.

Suzanne: I’m a wife, artist and teacher. I’m also a mother to two incredible little people, boys born while we have been living in Italy. They constantly reintroduce me to the beauty and tiny wonders of life. We’ve lived in Italy for nearly seven years and still find every day a new experience.

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Meri: So how did living in Italy develop and what’s it like?

Suzanne:  I guess the whole story of what brought us to Italy would qualify as one of those defining moments in my life as well. I had applied for a teaching position for several years to teach overseas. Life went on and I never got a nibble but I kept my application updated just the same and went on with things. In the meantime, we had decided to start a family. A process that became a journey…and caused me to rely on that ‘strength’ yet again. Many nights, I simply wished on as many stars as I could find shimmering in the Arizona sky as my longing to become a mama grew more tender. Finally, we found out we were expecting and all the weight and worry lifted. In a classic, ‘be careful what you wish for’ moment – weeks later I was offered a teaching position overseas…in Italy. It was one of those moments where we simply had to leap, and we did. I arrived in Italy 5 months pregnant, navigating a new country, a new job, and a new little one just months later. It’s been an adventure ever since…

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Meri: So here’s a “big” question. . . what’s life all about for you, right now? What do you understand the meaning of life to be?

Suzanne: It’s about experiencing, about appreciating the preciousness of every breath, the wonder and possibility that each moment carries.  Every experience and every person coming into our life can be lessons, opportunities for growth, if only we’ll allow them to be so. Our job is to be open. To navigate the world with curiosity.

Meri: What are your personal challenges within that framework?

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Suzanne: Finding a balance while maintaining a healthy marriage, an active family, teaching  full time, and pursuing a creative life is a constant and delicate dance.  I’ve set myself a big agenda and it’s hard to do everything well.  On top of that, I have to function in two languages – and I’m still learning Italian after living here for years!

 Meri: That’s a daunting set of tasks you’re given yourself. It’s also likely to take up a lot of “me” time, because work and children and husband and running a household are things that need constant investment of attention. It’s all hands-on stuff! So what do you do for you? What fills you up when you’re depleted?

Suzanne: Little moments and tiny details. The sound of the sea, my son’s little hand in mine. The vastness of the horizon over the ocean. The colors of a sunset. The glimmer of evening stars. A glass of wine with a friend. Unrolling my yoga mat. Watching leaves dance in the wind. Laughing!

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Meri: I don’t hear anything about creative expression there, yet I know that’s part of who you are. What about creative expression?

Suzanne:  My education is in the fine arts. I’ve been inspired, bemused, and moved by visual images as far back as I can recall. At the same time, I love words. My great-grandmother was a poet and I like to think my passion for language is a gift of her lineage passed down to me. Words constantly whisper their names in my mind, sometimes so loudly they cry out to be recorded on paper or canvas. Sometimes they merely ask to be written on a scrap of paper and stuck inside a worn, beloved book, to be retrieved when the time is right. Both words and images are my constant companions.

Because of this marriage of visual images and word love, my creative journey is multifaceted. It can involve words penned on watercolor paper or a mixed media painting. Holding the camera and looking through the viewfinder at the world until the light is just right. Getting out the sewing machine and fabric and letting magic happen. I’m not fixated on one medium or another. The freedom of creating from whatever inspires me at that moment is important to me.

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Meri:  Are there experiences in your life that you see as formative – experiences that changed who you were and how you looked at life?

Suzanne:  Absolutely. The first one that comes to mind is my father’s death. He died unexpectedly when I was 18. That experience absolutely pulled the rug out from under my feet. The weight of grief and the changed landscape of my new world was almost too much for me to bear. To say that it was a very dark and empty time barely scratches the surface of what that time was like for me.  I finally decided to seek out help, someone who could help me find my way back to the light. I was given the advice to walk. Every day, go for a walk. No goal, no agenda, no destination. Just walk.

When you’re inundated with grief, even getting up and showering can be daunting. Nothing makes sense and everything takes overwhelming effort. It took a while to work up enough energy to even try. Finally, I began to walk. For weeks, I couldn’t see the point.  But I began to notice hundreds of details along my route. A thousand shades of green competing for attention in the spring. The call of a bird, back for the spring or passing through on the way to its winter vacation. The way it smelled after a rain shower.  When you’re walking, the rhythm focuses your attention, opens you up to teeny observations that would otherwise be missed.  Walking turned out to be a gift that allowed me to let life back in ever so gradually, ever so gently. It was an opening. It allowed me to uncover my strength, to find a new way to live in my changed world.

© 2011 Suzanne Sperl

Meri: Along the way, what have you learned about life and love that were surprising to you?

Suzanne: I have learned that life is a mystery but it is love that is the gift. In every way she finds us, love provides an opportunity for us to expand, attune, connect, feel deeply, express, unite, and give back. Who could ask for more than that?