Welcome back.

That’s the attitude, Osaka!

Steps (remind yourself that it makes a difference if you do these for reals):

1.  Outer space.

2.  Inner space.

3.  As we head into the final stretch, let’s place Richard Wagamese very firmly in our minds: remember that the writing you are calling into being is a celebration and acknowledgement of this great man and what he taught us about ourselves and about the world around us.

You might recall that in the video we watched of Wagamese’s “chosen sister,” Shelagh Rogers, speaking of him after his death, she mentioned how he had said that hearing Rostropovich play the Dvořák Cello Concerto changed his life:

“When I first heard it, I ached.  It was the most sublime music I had ever heard; it made me crave more for myself.”

You job is to copy this photograph of Wagamese with as much precision and detail as you can muster – keeping in mind Lynda Barry’s incredible advice about images being like maps: a collection of lines with spatial relationships – while you listen to the “Adagio” from the concerto.

Put your heart into it.

4.  Title: “For Richard.”

5.  Date it.

6.  Send it to me.

See you at 10:00!