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On a Wing and a Prayer
 Kaye Maresso learns to let go. In an ironic twist, Icarus and his wings have been the catalyst for a late-coming Sydney sculptor recapturing her youthful dreams. Through a long, and recently somewhat quirky journey, Icarus is helping Kaye Maresso achieve her early wish to become a sculptor. Along the way she has discovered just how much the individual can accomplish if they set their mind steadfastly to the task. But it was ultimately her immersion in Buddhism that helped her to complete the journey, when it all threatened to come asunder.... Kaye originally thought she would need to cut, shape, and curl some 400 feathers [for Icarus' wings], each just a few centimeters in length. "That guesstimate was so naive. I have probably cut, and then glued, around 3,000 feathers onto the figure. When you consider that each feather takes around five minutes just to cut and shape, plus the time to attach it, I spent around 250 hours of my life cutting out plastic feathers. I can do them in my sleep!" ... "Going back to study has taught me that you have to persevere and follow your dream. I now more fully recognize that you have to believe in yourself, because others will question and doubt you all the way, and it is very easy to catch that doubt." This belief, which she attributes in part to her study of Buddhism, was to become pivotal during the creation process. One morning a friend called to say that Icarus had crashed some four feet to the ground from where it had been suspended... This article can be read in its entirety in Mandala
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