Sweet FootJourneys

Hello, my name is Kat Bernhardt. An Alaskan born in Fairbanks in the middle of the state, my feet are always moving, hiking tundra trails or “walking down” a new foreign city. Like a cat, going up things is great (Mont St. Michel, Vor Frelsers Kirke, through the forest up to Wartburg Castle, the winding gold staircase to the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, the 412 tiny steps to the Citadel of Dinant), but coming back down is not so easy.

Sweet FootJourneys is a place to share stories, words and images in various forms that reveal something sweet about the “feet-on-the-ground” journey of life. Puzzles, stories, poems, miracles of nature, inspiring people, travel tips, and more are found within. I hope you enjoy!

Sojourns
There’s something about the word “sojourn” that sounds like luxuriating in a bath of travel. It’s not quick; it’s not checking a box. Sojourning is staying around a little while, meeting people who speak another language, tasting foods that become familiar, going to the same café every morning and the waiter knows you. Here are some of my sojourns.

Pansy Stockton
My great-grandmother created an art form called Sun Painting, building three-dimensional views through a window out of leaves, twigs, bark, and moss with colors painted by the sun. A founder of the Denver Artists Guild, adopted into the Oglala Lakota tribe, named Wanashta Wastaywin, and featured in movie shorts and with the Mouseketeers. View her work and watch “This is Your Life” from 1953 featuring her story.

Chinese Baseball Team
Travel with a Chinese Baseball Team to King Salmon, Alaska and along Iceland’s Ring Road.

Bon Mot
I love the sounds and stories of words regardless of their language. Here you will find words, some in English, some in Icelandic or French or German, and their meanings and stories. Le Bon Mot means “The Good Word” in French.

Galvanizers
When traveling, it’s often the people I meet rather than the buildings and monuments that impact me most. Many lived hundreds or thousands of years ago, some I’ve had the privilege to meet in person. What they have in common is their ability to stir things up in a positive way, make a difference in the world, and inspire others to do the same.

One such change agent was a physician and physicist in Bologna, Italy named Luigi who noticed, back in 1786, that the muscles of dead frog legs twitched with the application of electric stimulation. In ways that Luigi could not have foreseen, his discovery sparked the scientific field of bioelectricity, the novel Frankenstein, and a new word: “galvanize” because Luigi’s last name was Galvani.

The word first appeared in Italian as “galvanismo” and became “galvanism” in English. By 1818, the English writer Mary Shelley imagined a scientific protagonist, Frankenstein, who used galvanism to bring a monster to life.

According to Merriam-Webster, the word “galvanize” means: ¹to subject to the action of an electric current especially for the purpose of stimulating physiologically, ²to stimulate or excite as if by an electric shock, and ³to coat iron or steel with zinc.

By extension, “galvanizer” means “a leader who stimulates and excites people to action.”

Change agents, catalysts, movers and shakers, galvanizers are people to learn from and here are some of their stories.

Movie Retreads
The novels of our times, movies entertain, and sometimes inspire, with engaging stories. The visual medium provides opportunities for screenwriters to stretch the art of storytelling in new ways, setting a canvas for actors, directors, editors, composers, and animators to awe and move us through their craft. Here are some of my favorite movies.

Novel Retreads
The first known novel, The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu, follows the life of the son of an emperor in medieval Japan and was published sometime before 1021. A thousand years later, novels continue pulling people into their imaginary worlds through the power of the written word alone. Here are some novels I’d like to share.

Poetry Retreads
Before the written word, the rhythm and rhyme of poetry helped people remember stories and songs so that they could be told and sung again and again. It has been said that a culture’s poetry is its soul. In a speech at Amherst College on October 26, 1963, John F. Kennedy said, “When power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the area of man’s concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses.” We could use more poetry. Here are some of my finds.

Travel Tips
Take a peek at some of my recommendations for lodging, restaurants, and great places to visit in Europe, Costa Rica, Alaska, and the Lower 48.

Destination Unknown
Travel from Alaska through Western Canada and across the continental United States to Charleston, South Carolina in a journey without a known end.

Science
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, science is “the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the natural and physical world through observation and experiment.” I enjoy learning how things work and observing the natural world. The opportunities I’ve had to work with scientists have been among the most rewarding of my life. For that reason, I can get a little emotional about it. Science is not a person or an entity. It is a process. Rarely do you arrive. The journey of science is what gives it its joy. When we are open to the imagination of science, open to question and learn, then we can grow a bit in our understanding of the fascinating universe, world and body we inhabit. Here you will find some fascinating scientific excursions that often come with more questions than answers.

Hiking the Bible
It’s quite the foot-journey to read the Bible, which is essentially a book about people making journeys on foot. Regardless of what you believe, the Bible is rich with story, culture, history and includes at least six different literary forms at first count. It may seem archaic, but many things happening in today’s world find their roots in the places, events, cultures and philosophies found in the Bible, which makes it not only an interesting study, but a necessary one in order to understand different peoples and perspectives in the world today. I’ve studied and taught the Bible many times and I’d like to be your guide on its journey. Get your sandals, your feet will get wet.

Writings: Stories and Poems
I was in the Third Grade when I decided to write my autobiography. It was short. From scientific articles, poems, short stories, essays, short plays, Bob and Larry skits, sports news articles, and features about inspiring people, I haven’t stopped writing since. The written word is part of my everyday life. I love the sounds of words and the stories of how they came to be. Although I suffer from chronic awkwardness, both in interactions with people and in my writing, still, I strive to create something that can be meaningful to someone. Here are some of my writings.

Photography
Fill the frame. Shoot verbs. Expose for the light. Living with a classically trained, old school photographer, these are some of the phrases I’ve heard over and over again. Keep hoping it will sink in. Here is a space devoted to the craft of photography.

Image Transfers
According to legend, in the 1960s a Polaroid research photographer left a Polacolor negative face down on a counter top and, impressed by the compelling image, began experimenting with what became the image transfer process. It gained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s.

In the 1990s, Dan Bandel began creating his own image transfers from polaroid film. His receptor sheet of choice was watercolor paper. He occasionally used watercolor pencils. I’ve had the privilege to witness the process a few times. It is a blend of artistry and chance.

In Dan Bandel’s own words from 2006: ”I think image transfers and manipulations lend themselves to pushing the boundaries of possibility. I never know exactly how the end result will look, so my preconceptions are irrelevant. I simply want to generate a response in the viewer, to foster discussion, and to invite the viewer to step closer to the image to figure out what is happening.”

In 2006, Dan and I collaborated on a series of image transfers and poems. Here are five selects from that show.

Kiva Treks
Follow the padded explorations of an Australian Shepherd.

Puzzles
Puzzles sharpen the little gray cells. Here you will find a few.