connection

watercolor

Connection [is] the energy that exists between people

when they feel seen, heard, and valued;

when they can give and receive without judgement,

and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.

-Brené Brown

the silent scream

fabric and gel medium on layered wood panel

“Trauma is personal. 

It does not disappear if it is not validated.

When it is ignored or invalidated 

the silent screams continue internally 

heard only by the one held captive.” 

― Danielle Bernock 

Emerging With Wings: A True Story of Lies, Pain, And The LOVE that Heals

because sometimes you must...

Acrylic on canvas

When you're drowning, 

you don't say

 'I would be incredibly pleased if someone would have the foresight 

to notice me drowning and come and help me,' 

you just scream.

-John Lennon

and that’s that…

watercolor  

We can’t all, and some of us don’t. 

That’s all there is to it.

 -Eeyore

"Winnie-the-Pooh

the comfort of a friend

watercolor

You and I can share the silence 

 Finding comfort together 

 The way old friends do

— Abba

"The Way Old Friends Do" (1980)

we all have it

watercolor

We all have pain 

 We all have sorrow 

 But if we are wise 

 We know that there's always tomorrow

— Bill Withers

"Lean on Me”  

listen close...

watercolor

Listen to the MUSTN’TS, child

Listen to the DON’TS

Listen to the Shouldn'ts

The IMPOSSIBLES, the WONT’S

Listen to the NEVER HAVES

then listen close to me —

Anything can happen, child,

ANYTHING can be.

 – Shell Silerstein 
“Listen to the Mustn'ts”
from "Where the Sidewalk Ends"

each friend shapes our world...

watercolor

Each friend represents a world in us,

a world possibly not born until they arrive.

-Anaïs Nin

 

what is 'normal' anyway?

watercolor, pen and ink

If you always try to be normal, 

You will never know how amazing you can be.

-Maya Angelo

aged pleasure...

watercolor

 One does not get better

but different and older

and that

is always a pleasure.

-Gertrude Stein

be...patient...

watercolor

Patience is also a form of action.

-Augusta Rodin

questions matter...

watercolor

It is better to know some of the questions 

than to have all of the answers.

James Thurber

 

it makes a difference...

watercolor, pen and ink

The difference between 

misery and happiness 

depends on what we do 

with our attention.

-Sharon Salzburg

dare...

gouache and watercolor on black cotton paper

Dare

 to be naïve.

- Buckminster Fuller

 

just be...

torn paper collage on index card

No need to hurry.

No need to sparkle.

No need to be anybody but oneself.

- Virginia Woolf

We relate… therefore we are

torn paper collage, pen and ink on index card

“I suppose that since most of our hurts come through relationships 

so will our healing, 

and I know that grace rarely makes sense 

for those looking in from the outside.” 

― William Paul Young, The Shack

 

destination unknown…

torn paper collage on index card

All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.

- Martin Buber

 

don’t make up your mind yet...

Watercolor

 The time to make up your mind about people, 

is never.

~Philip Barry

misunderstood...

watercolor, pen and ink

Perhaps one did not want to be loved

so much as to be understood.

- George Orwell

 

simplify...

watercolor

It is not a daily increase,

but a daily decrease.

Hack away at the 

inessentials.

-Bruce Lee

free to do right...

watercolor

Freedom consists not in doing what we like,

But in having the right to do what we ought.

- Pope John Paul II

Broken places

Watercolor

 The world breaks everyone, and afterward,

some are strong at the broken places

—Ernest Hemingway 

sharing at PaintPartyFriday 

Dark defines Light

Watercolor

The dark does not destroy the light; 
it defines it. 

It's our fear of the dark that casts our joy 

into the shadows.

— Brené Brown (The Gifts of Imperfection)

Sharing at PaintPartyFriday

 

…but some are more equal…

Somehow it seemed as though the farm had grown richer 

without making the animals themselves any richer 

– except, of course, for the pigs and the dogs. 

Watercolor

ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL 

BUT SOME ANIMALS 

ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS.

-George Orwell, Animal Farm

 

...for always and always

(study in DS shadow violet)

“When the Man waked up he said, ‘What is Wild Dog doing here?’
And the Woman said, 

‘His name is not Wild Dog any more,
but the First Friend,
because 

he will be our friend 

for always 

and always 

and always.'”
—Rudyard Kipling 

say whaaaaat???

Daniel Smith Watercolor on Fabriano paper

The only thing that should surprise us 

is that there are still some things that can surprise us.

~Francois de La Rochefoucauld

Sharing at PaintPartyFriday

it’s not about the fish...

Daniel Smith Watercolor on Fabriano paper

"Many men go fishing all of their lives 

without knowing that it is not fish they are after."  

-Henry David Thoreau

you cannot ever leave completely... nor do you want to...

watercolor

'You cannot leave Africa, Africa said. 

It is always with you, there inside your head. 

Our rivers run in currents in the swirl of your thumbprints; 

our drumbeats counting out your pulse; 

our coastline the silhouette of your soul.' 

-Bridget Dore

from the poem Africa Smiled 

 

watch it...

watercolor on moleskin paper

Watch your thoughts, they become words.                         
Watch your words, they become actions.                          
 Watch your actions, they become habits.                          
 Watch your habits, they become your character.             
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.
Frank Outlaw

bow to the King

watercolor on fabriano paper

The wise men’s hearts

We’re filled with joy

As they bowed down

Before the boy!

They gave their treasures 

To the king

And went back home

Still worshipping.

~ The Rhyme Bible Storybook, ZondervanKidsz

 

the poor and dismissed... they heard it first

repurposed fabric, gel medium and acrylic on wood panel

• Yet as I read the birth stories about Jesus
•  I cannot help but conclude 
• that though the world may be tilted 
• toward the rich and powerful,
•  God is tilted toward the underdog. 
• 
  
• -Philip Yancey
• The Jesus I Never Knew

 

it might have been

fabric scraps

on acrylic and wood panel 

For all sad words of tongue and pen, 

The saddest are these,

 'It might have been'.

John Greenleaf Whittier

 A rhino is killed every 12 hours. 

How sad it will be if these endangered species 

become the next “it might have beens” our offspring will call extinct.

wrong will be right

“Right is right even if no one is doing it; 

wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it.” 
― Saint Augustine

dismantled burlap

and discarded fabric scraps

on redeemed acrylic canvas

“Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.”

― C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

When darkness seems to win...

Study in Shadow Violet (DS)

Watercolor on Fabriano Paper

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things
'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe
When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not our home
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy
What if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise

~Laura Story, Blessings

Scottie (2003-2018)

“When the Man waked up he said, ‘What is Wild Dog doing here?’ 

And the Woman said, ‘His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always.'”

—Rudyard Kipling

Watercolor on Kilimanjaro Paper

Scottie brought much delight in his 15 years of life.

He never outgrew his puppy face or paws.

And that he smiled, was undeniable.

His wag is still now, but his paw prints remain on many a heart.

Hand pierced for me...

    “I desire him who died for our sake. 

I desire him who rose for us.

 Suffer me to receive the pure light;

 when I shall arrive there, 

I shall become a human being.” 

-Irenaeus of Lyons

Watercolor on AquaBoard

God’s great project is the human being, 

Christ is the first true human, 

out of death comes life, 

and strength is made perfect in weakness. 

- Dr. John Behr

 Biola Lent Project