When I work, and in my art, I hold hands with God - Robert Mapplethorpe

Henry David Thoreau once said

"Things are beautiful if you love them." 

I have found a new passion recently.

Perhaps it's therapy and meditation.

Perhaps it's another way for me to express my feelings.

I can't quite pinpoint it,

but I know it does bring me spiritually closer to all that I love.

Thomas Merton wrote that

"Art enables us to find ourselves and

lose ourselves at the same time"

I have completed 13 paintings over the last 90 days.

Above and below are my two latest attempts.

" 'Twant me, 'twas the lord. I always told him,

 I trust to you. I don't know where to go or what to do,

but I expect you to lead me,'

and he always did."

- Harriet Tubman

How to people get through adversity?

I guess it just comes down to trust.

Trust that the faith we hold so close will see us through.

I have discovered that each of us have our own

methods and traditions for meeting

the terrors of the uncertain future.

I have found great comfort and assurance in painting.
A feeling of warmth.
A feeling of love.
A feeling of closeness.
The Warmth, Love and Closeness
envelopes me as I paint.

The above acrylic is a crude abstract of Venice.

A place Gaye and I had planned numerous times to visit,

but Cancer would not allow.
It broke Gaye's heart to never make that trip.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said,

"In art the hand can never execute anything higher

than the heart can imagine"

I like to imagine her above St Mark's Square,
or above everywhere or anywhere we
have ever been or planned to go.
She pulling my hand out of the Darkness,
and reminding me of the three words she instilled in me,
Faith, Hope and Love

With each painting,

I inscribe on the back

"Faith, Hope, Love"

What a blessing,
for this new found outlet.
And a reminder of the Gift I had been Given.

Art is a collaboration between God and the artist,
and the less the artist does, the better.
- Andre Gilde

Amen

"Those who appreciate life the most are given the most to appreicate"

As a famous sage once observed,

"It is the person who likes to pat dogs to

 whom dogs come for pats.

Most of us spend our lives trying to

escape from self-centeredness.

Maybe that's the whole point, the whole challenge,

what the whole thing is all about.

Some succeed better than others.

It seems the more things you care about (outside of yourself)

the more intensely you care,

the more alive you are.

To care, you have to surrender the armor of indifference.

You have to be willing to act,

to make the first move.

It takes a great deal of courage to really care,

 to love and then to lose....

life is not fair and often it is safer

not to get involved, not to care....

but in that end do we really live?

 We must be willing to act, to approach,

to be absorbed, and in the absorption....

to be fulfilled.

Thank you SS for your wonderful words

of wisdom and friendship.

You are right in that it is us
that chooses the glass half full/empty throughout our lives.

Also,
Thank you for reminding me of how much my glass has runneth over!!!!

Our favorite people watching spot in Sienna

(It is indeed a full glass)

Hopeful Resolution

So, here we are:

2011

To be honest, I am relieved 2010 is in the rear view mirror. It was a tough, emotional year for me. The second year of experiencing the world without the physical presence of my "North Star" to guide me. Without that Guidance, my mental makeup, outlook and optimism took a beating...

As Paula Cole says: "It is ME who is my enemy, ME who beats me up, ME who makes the Monsters, ME who strips my confidence..."

The Rev James Martin came up with 10 spiritual learnings that he wished he adopted years ago.

1. First up, Stop worrying so much! it's useless (I.e. Jesus was right.)
2. Being a saint means being yourself. Stop trying to be someone else and just be your best self. Saves you heartache.
3. There's no right way to pray, any more than there's a right way to be a friend. What's "best" is what works best for you.
4. Your deepest, most heartfelt desires are God's desires for you. And vice versa. Listen. And follow them.
5. Within you is the idea of your best self. Act as if you were that person and you will become that person, with God's grace.
6. Don't worry to much about the worst that can happen. Even if it happens, God is with you, and you can handle it. Really.
7. You can't force people to approve of you, agree with you, be impressed with you, love you or even like you. Stop trying.
8. When we compare, we are usually imagining someone else's life falsely. So our real-life loses out. I.e. Compare and despair
9. Seven things to say frequently:  I love you.  Thank you.  Thank you, God.  Forgive me.  I'm so happy for you!  Why not?  Yes.
10. Peace and joy come after asking God to free you -- from anything that keeps you from being loving and compassionate.

So here's to 2011 and to Re-Discovering Hope, Love and Optimism.



Deacon investigating the early morning Fog at the lake

 I am certain my spiritual North Star is pulling for me.....