Sunrise 20 June 5:47am

20140620-084443.jpg
Between sunset last night, and sunrise this morning I went to the camp talent show. We gathered out on a beautiful porch and enjoyed songs, and poems, stories, and jokes. The desert got darker and the community closer. I found myself thinking about the year we lived in Cuba. When we arrived, we had paperwork to fill out: name, passport number, home address, and then we had to list our skill and our talent. Those were two things that everyone should have to contribute to the community. As I enjoyed the talent show last night I thought how wonderful it was, and what talent I might offer up. What would your talent be if you had a minute, a week, a month, or a year to prepare? Think about it, perhaps we will meet next summer in the desert and by the light of the stars, share a little part of ourselves in a way we humans have for thousands of years.

Spring Blooms Red Orange

20140509-152921.jpg
18″x24″ pastel on sanded board

I found this great poem on a packet of Indian Paint seeds: “A strange little flower with a sun-kissed nose, without perfume yet red as a rose. Did some Indian maiden plant you here in the footprint left by the hoof of a deer?” -A.V. Hudson

Reflection on a Tx Pond

20140508-142756.jpg
10″x8″ pastel on sanded paper.
This painting was a demo for a women’s group my mom has been part of since I was a little girl. After I painted the demo, they all got their hands dirty and discovered the artist inside of them. It was special for me to listen to their conversations formed by a lifetime of friendship.

Boats at dusk

20140322-112322.jpg
While riding my bike on spring break, I looked down and noticed a beautiful little plant with tiny leaves. “That looks like thyme” I said to my husband. “How do you know?” He asked. “I’ve always had thyme in my garden. Will you hand me a little? I want to taste it and make sure.” Tasted just like thyme. “Look we are surrounded by it, it is all over the trail” I exclaimed. “Could you use it”. My husband asked. “Yes thyme would make our fresh seafood dinner taste lovely.” I responded. We rode along in silence for a few minutes, and my husband wisely said “you should replay our whole conversation in your head, but replace the word thyme, with the word time.”

The next day we found all the thyme on the trail in bloom. The thyme became a metaphor for my family vacation, I wanted to notice it, use it, enjoy it, add a little extra to everything. I wanted our time together to bloom.

I painted this in the car traveling home, using the last bit of time left from our vacation.