Just Keep Swimming

As I mentioned in my blog the other day, I finally told a few of my girlfriends about this new journey I have begun. Well, the next morning emailed the link (how crazy is that? I have a link!) to my immediate family. My two sisters were so excited for me. So were my parents, but they didn't quite understand what a blog was about. One of my sisters embraced this idea so enthusiastically that she immediately forwarded the link to a few people she thought might enjoy it. Later, when we spoke on the phone, she felt a bit sheepish and hoped I didn't mind that she had done that. At first I felt this pang of fear and drop in my self confidence (which actually didn't have far to fall because it is relatively low already) because one of the people she emailed is an old childhood friend of the family ( Hi Trev), but then I took a deep breathe and realized that in the end, this is what I want for this journey. I don't want to put myself out there just a little bit... I want to put myself out there full on; no holding back. And when things get a bit scary or intimidating I am going to follow some wise advice that a funny little fish once said... "Just keep swimming".

This same sister, who is one of the smartest, kindest, wittiest, prettiest, people I know, and by far the most generous, said that finding out about my blog inspired her to start a journey of her own. She has been thinking about making some changes for awhile and I guess this gave her motivation to get started. I am soooo proud of her because change is scary and it is hard, but sometimes it is what you have to do in order to get where you want to be.

 

 Nestled

7x7

acrylic on canvas

This painting (acrylic on canvas, 7x7) was done at the workshop I attended this summer and will also be part of the show. It is a little fungus that I had been looking as I ate my meals in the veranda off the dining hall. It was tucked right in the crook between two birch trees that were sort of growing out of each other. The entire time I was working on it I couldn't get over the feel of the paint. The air was incredibly humid and the paint acted much more like oil than acrylic. I had so much fun; I felt like I was playing. Because of the climate I had no choice but to paint differently than I usually do. My mind kept repeating a quote that the instructor had brought up in an earlier discussion. It somehow gave me permission to play and experiment; to not think I always have to paint in the way I have become accustomed.

"Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes."

                                                                                                  -Walt Whitman


And now that I have begun this blogging adventure, I think it will become my way to discover all of my multitudes.