A Beautiful Gift and a Beautiful Passage

As I mentioned yesterday I have some new presents to share with you. One of the wonderful and beautiful gifts that Jonathan had sent to me was this amazing and lovely ceramic bowl from one of my favorite Etsy artists, Poodle Breath. It's joined the ranks of one of my most favorite things...I know I know, the list is long, ha ha! I have one of her beautiful porcelain rabbits necklaces and I just adore it.

I came across this beautiful excerpt the other day in my blog surfing and it just hit me square in the heart, I just love knowing that there are indeed other 'searchers' out there... "I am one of the searchers. There are, I believe, millions of us. We are not unhappy, but neither are we really content. We continue to explore life, hoping to uncover its ultimate secret. We continue to explore ourselves, hoping to understand. We like to walk along the beach, we are drawn by the ocean, taken by its power, its unceasing motion, its mystery and unspeakable beauty. We like forests and mountains, deserts and hidden rivers, and the lonely cities as well. Our sadness is as much a part of our lives as is our laughter. To share our sadness with one we love is perhaps as great a joy as we can know - unless it be to share our laughter. We searchers are ambitious only for life itself, for everything beautiful it can provide. Most of all we love and want to be loved. We want to live in a relationship that will not impede our wandering, nor prevent our search, nor lock us in prison walls; that will take us for what little we have to give. We do not want to prove ourselves to another or compete for love. For wanderers, dreamers, and lovers, for lonely men and women who dare to ask of life everything good and beautiful. It is for those who are too gentle to live among wolves." ~James Kavanaugh

The feeling of living amongst 'wolves' is a sentiment I do often feel...the feeling of never quite belonging or fitting in follows me closely. But I have found that beautiful soul to love me for the so little I have to give, the soul who lets me be me...who loves me more for being unique and sensitive, the one who allows me to search...he keeps the world and wolves at bay and for everything that he is...such a bountiful array of goodness and wonderfulness...I am forever forever grateful and humbled and I am just so lucky and in love. Thank You my Heart. And with all of that shared, ha ha...I must touch on a question which a friend asked me as to whether my blog was too personal. Now I must confirm that I do always think twice and read 4 or 5 times what I post (this posting has changed 3 or 4 times already!). It's difficult to know what to write and what to omit sometimes, being that I want my authentic self to shine through to you all. But when I really think about it, I can come to the easy conclusion that 'no, it's not to personal'...in this cold and evil world of ours, to be open and personal helps me reach out to others who are the same. And it helps one searcher remember that the world also has it's warmth and wonderfulness too, I see that daily in all the lovely, warm and open blogs I read. I must thank all of my fellow bloggers for your openness, inspiration and glimpses into your enchanting worlds. That is why I love the blogging world so much, it gives me a direct connection to people with similar interests, paths, goals and dreams and having that connection is a powerful and uplifting thing. The blogs that I love most, are indeed the very personal ones, the ones where the artist is truthful about their journey through life and as artists they are all indeed sensitives and searchers and I love that. I know that the art directors and clients will not come to my blog, they will go to my website, they don't have time nor interest in my personal or artistic journey...this blog is for fellow searchers, and the art lover who wants to know the story behind the picture...so I refuse to fully censor my true journey, and experiences here...I want to join the ranks of all those wonderful, authentic and charming blogs out there that actually inspire and contribute to others lives by offering a hand, and insight and the knowledge that we really aren't alone in our search. And for fear that I am making no sense at all, ha ha...I'll stop here. I'll wish you a wonderful day, an easy creative journey (does that exist?) and the hopes that you will indeed question yourself and things throughout this day...Grow..keep growing, that's the whole point, in my little opinion anyhow. Be Well, and see you all here tomorrow. Thanks for 'tuning' in. As for myself, I am off to a carousel meeting...

New Painting

6"x 6" acrylic on canvas, the original will be available for purchase shortly.

I had fun with this little one yesterday. When I paint, whether it's big or small canvasses/wood, I work in my upstairs studio, which I share with Jin and Hazel. They always seem to enjoy having me in there and I just felt really content sitting there working away on this picture whiles the girls played and hopped about the room and took short snoozes on their sun-dappled window bench.

Some days are just so lovely. I am lucky enough to get alot of those 'surges of happiness' where you feel so content that your heart squeezes, or you feel so happy your sure that it's got to be oozing out of your very own pores. Yesterday was a day like that for me. It started with a beautifully sunny day and a wonderful rabbit snuggle with Roo & Ella out on the deck. I got to spend my whole day painting which I think I'll never stop feeling grateful for. And in the evening Jonathan and I went for a nice bike ride with my pal Julie, we went about 15km which was pretty good for our first time out. I admit to having my eyes glued to the sides of the path for any little creature that might need rescuing!

Here's my favourite photos of Roo napping on the deck yesterday.

I really feel like I need to say at this point that I am not trying to give the impression through my blogging, that I live with rose coloured glasses, or that I don't have my own bad days and trials and tribulations to live through, I do, we do...as a hyper-sensitive person, I have alot of those hard and sh***y days. As many of my artist readers will know, just being an artist comes with it's own confused kit and caboodle. But I think we are both very positive and strong people so we bounce back quickly. I want my blog to be positive and inspiring and yes still authentic to me and my true life, which is also very very full of those wonderful heart-squeezing days. And since I have always been a positive person, that is the vantage point that I want to write my blog from. I don't know why I am saying all this now...I could go on...I just want all my readers to know that I am being true to them...and ultimately I just really want everyone to enjoy my posted artwork, to get glimpses into my personal life which you don't get through my website and to simply share in my growing collection and accumulation of inspiration, surprises and beauty.

With that said, I am off to paint...with a slight headache I must add, so we'll see how much I get done! Thanks Everyone and until tomorrow.

Buddha Watercolour

Good Morning Everyone. Well I think my flu is finally dissipating leaving me with just a slight migraine to deal with. Our April Fools Day brought us a flooded garage, a burnt out car headlight which you apparently can't buy anymore and Jonathan's computer deciding on top of everything else that it was a good day to die for no apparent reason! My mom always did tell me that bad luck always comes in 3's and I admit to being every so slightly superstitious and sometimes I do find myself watching for that pattern of 3 but I snap myself out of it quickly because I refuse to look into the future, espeacially my own future with any kind of negativity.

I must note here that I really want my blog to be an extension of myself, I want it to be authentic. When I am having a great day I want to post about it and when I am having not such a great day I want to share that too. Because let's face it life is difficult and not always easy and I wouldn't feel true if I put on a happy face or tone all of the time. I hope all my readers don't mind this.

For today let me share with you a watercolour of a Buddha that I've been playing with here and there on Monday and yesterday. The watercolours and mini-lino cuts that I am sharing with you aren't necessarily images that I will use in my illustration portfolios, they are really just projects for me to keep my creative spirit fully active. Sometimes it is so easy to become a slave of your industry and to just do work that you think will sell or be good for your portfolio and that is fine on some level, that is just a part of the business but I think you get more results and satisfaction when your working more from you heart and tapping into your creative well without over analyzing too much. And, since I work mostly with coloured pencil little side projects in other medium is really fun for me. A week working in some other medium and my fingers are craving to get back to my beloved coloured pencils.

I did this watercolour from a photograph I took long ago. When the ROM used to have it's free Tuesday admissions I'd go there often on my own and sketch and photograph things. I loved the oldness, the quietness and I was particularly drawn to anything Egyptian or Buddhist.

I have a somewhat busy day ahead of me so I shall say bye for now...till tomorrow. Have fun creating and thanks for reading.