ARCHERY -ZEN -POTTERY -PIC NIC -RAIN

You probably didn't know I am an archer (well, not much of an archer, but I try). The thing that really impresses me about archery is its resemblance to pottery. A group of archers sounds like a group of potters sharing news of new equipment and sympathizing over age-old problems. For archery, like pottery, goes back to our primitive ancestors. More than that, it requires the same sort of discipline to learn. When I'm being coached in archery I'm reminded of learning to throw on the wheel. "Push: Push with your left hand. Keep pushing your bow towards the target and when everything is right, re- lease smoothly. Oh. you dropped your bow and released with a jerk’ Try it again." (and again --- and again).

Potters look to Japan for an ideal in pottery, and Japanese archers make an art of archery relating it closely to Zen.

They say that if everything is right the arrow shoots itself. Doesn't that remind you of that rare moment when everything is so right that the pot seems to throw itself and is exactly right so that it needs no effort on your part to make it so? Reading one of Daniel Rhedes' books I was surprised to find him saying "It is like shooting with a bow and arrow. When it's right

it's so easy it's as if somebody else did it".

On Saturday, June 12th, I was struck with another resemblance

- utter dedication. If you remember, that was the day of the Potters’ Guild annual picnic at Iris Smith's. It was also the

day of the Maple Ridge Archery Club's annual Fraser Valley shoot.

The day started out quite promising weather-wise, with light cloud and a fair amount of sunshine, but by afternoon the clouds closed in and it rained. It poured. It deluged. But did that stop the shoot? Of course not. There were all the archers drenched to the skin but still lining up on the shooting line aiming at that elusive bullseye. Then I raced home, changed to dry clothes, dried my hair with my daughter's blow dryer, and trundled off to the pottery picnic. And there were all the potters out in the

15.