I'm at the kitchen table, in the calmness of the morning, savoring my one cup of coffee, sip by sip. The kinetic little nuthatch is entertaining me at the moment, but he will quickly fly off with one seed and a chickadee or yellow finch will spontaneously reappear. In contrast, the sparrows stop by and gorge on sunflowers leaving a mess of shells on the ground. I wanted time, time with you, time to do something meaningful, but it flew away across the grassgreen fields and up into the skyblue air, temporarily out of reach. In the process of trying to catch it, I realized that I was already holding onto it, and in that moment, I noticed what a beautiful day it was.  

AUGUST LIGHT...I was about to disappear upstairs earlier this evening, convinced that I needed to soak in a warm tub after our drive home from New Jersey, but then I realized that what I really needed was to grab my camera.   

I've been going through my photos today sitting here in the hospital with dad. It's been a really nice time. I came across this photo of Ellie that i took just before leaving to drive down to New Jersey last Sunday. I love Ellie's green eyes against the fabric of the white whicker chair on our screened-in porch. 

Clean white laundry, blowing in the warm summer air, has such a beautiful simplicity to it. I took this photo on the Vineyard a couple of weeks ago when i was there with my friend, Kate. I've been down in New Jersey all week waiting for my dad to have his open heart surgery. It was postponed 5 days due to unexpected complications with his kidneys. Everything is back on, now, for tomorrow. The surgeon was just in and said we should expect dad to be in the hospital for 10 days. It's 4pm, the clouds are moving in, and it's gotten still.  

My bag. I was going to draw my wallet, but it wasn't very exciting. This was really fun to work on.

I did both these drawings in one sitting this morning. The desklamp was#2, and the mug was #4 challenge. I skipped over #3(purse or wallet) by mistake, so you can expect that as my next entry. The blue porcelain duck belonged to my mother-in-law, Katty, and it always reminds me of her, and I just love it so much. I actually have three of them, so I had this one made into a desklamp. The R. Wood mug is my favorite mug, and I love my morning cup of coffee sitting at my old farm table looking out over the back fields. I've felt scattered recently, so sitting down and drawing was so nice.

I was inspired by Danny Gregory to begin the everyday matters drawing challenge...365 drawings, one per day for a year. These are my favorite shoes right now, and I completed this drawing on Sunday, July 8th while I was still on Martha's Vineyard. I'm wondering if I can stay on track??? 

ANNA AND TOULOUSE...A LOVE STORY.

I wish i could somehow record all my spontaneous thoughts into writing. I am intrigued by the wistful connections I make when i am in touch with my senses, and the awareness of the spontaneous patterns that flow and skip carrying me away on inspirational fantasies. My inner monologue often only whispers the things that are essential, reduced by shouts, they recede, patiently waiting for the noise to subside. If we can quiet down and listen, and concentrate on fine tuning our senses and absorbing the moment, we may hear our own sweet whispers in the silence. This becomes the start of listening to what's important. I am learning that when I allow myself to actively pause in the stillness of a moment, I can appreciate my small and simple riches. "Watching from a distance has a tender effect on my love inside. I come to resent careless words that disrupt my warm thoughts. There is a strength in the unspoken exchange of an affectionate gesture. Pausing to watch you so many times over the years, I wonder...if you were ever aware of my distant admiration? Quiet reflection breathes a contentedness with my life. Warm memories linger through a sentimental journey. I love you."  

"FRONT PAGE POPPIES"  I started a new journal yesterday. It's been grey and rainy for a few days, so I needed some colorful front page poppies. It always amazes me how one little drawing can brighten things up. 

 I painted this little watercolor in my journal on Mother's day. We were on Martha's Vineyard and I was thinking of my mom, and listening to the birds. I'm so glad that I recorded the cheerfulness of these little flowers because their memory accompanied me home, and after researching them, I now know that they belong to a plant called the  "Moonlight Scotch Broom", and that it was named this for the color of its small, pale yellow flowers which beautifully reflect the moonlight. So, once again, I realize that if I hadn't allowed myself to slow down and paint these stems of pretty little fragrant flowers, I might never have known their story. I can't help thinking about all the simple and natural beauty I miss out on racing through life. It is a balancing act to be aware of.

 

Painted this little picture of Sammy as he was sound asleep on our kitchen floor. I've had the joy, today, of really seeing all the wonderful ordinary things surrounding me. Even though it's been a slow and lazy day, I feel happier and content. I sat out back and painted the patterned bricks on our patio and the young elm tree with all the bird feeders. I saw a bluebird, and Ollie and I were just commenting on how we hadn't seen one yet. It's been a good day. 

Picked these white daffodils from our garden, and I loved them poised behind these beautiful pears I bought at a local market. The composition, combination of colors, and perfect moment inspired me to grab my journal and paint, something I'd been avoiding. I like my photograph better. 

A tree is beautiful, but what's more, it has a right to life: like water, the sun, and the stars, it is essential. Life on earth is inconceivable without trees.     -Anton Chekhov

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself."   -William Blake

I just recently bought the most beautiful book called The Life & Love of Trees by Lewis Blackwell, and I have just spent the past two hours of this quiet rainy morning absorbed in its pages and carried away to such a greater place, way beyond my own personal needs and responsibilities, to where I was reminded of how much we should all love and worship the trees in our world. In the opening of his introduction, Blackwell writes, " I saw the future and wanted to make it happen. Right now I should be outside digging holes and planting." This reminded me of my husband, Ollie, who has always loved and planted trees. 

"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit."  

                                                                                                                 - Nelson Henderson

REDBIRD

ROADSIDE COWS

i just finished my final color class this week, which was a bit challenging, but at least it inspired me to start painting. Today is a beautiful Saturday with nowhere to be, so i spread out my art supplies on our kitchen table and decided i would attempt to copy Wolf Kahn'spainting, Exuberant Fall. This is the result...just a beginning. i don't think i'm a very patient painter. it's a process...put it down...step away. i love the color and contrast, especially at this time of year when everything is looking so dull and monotone, although the days are getting longer and i can feel the spring.