The Pleasures of Growing

What a long week! We had our annual testing marathon at school....the kids seemed relaxed and prepared.....the teachers seemed relieved for it all to be over.  Although we still have 9 official days left of this school year, plans are already in the works for the new school year!

I'm just ready for a break...some relaxation time....some mornings when I can sleep past 5 a.m. and slowly enjoy my morning coffee.  This summer I plan on doing lots of relaxing. However, I also want to do more writing....MoMe gave me a book about writing a novel which was put together by the people who do the Annual Novel Writing Month....and it has given me some great ways to organize my "novel" thoughts, so to speak.  Some of my time will be spent writing.  And some of my spare time will be spent developing my painting skills.....

My mural painting adventure is going rather well.  It has turned into a much bigger project than anticipated but I am having so much fun! I painted individual leaves for three solid hours and it felt like only moments...except for the fact, my feet were totally numb and I could hardly climb down off the scaffold.  There is still so much to do....But I can hardly wait. The funny thing is I have so many ideas in my head now....images to paint. And it doesn't even matter that I have no clue how to paint some of them....it will come to me.

It is so amazing to be my age....which according to my students ranges from 25(my favorite) to 87(not so favorite)....and still have the desire to learn new skills, have new adventures, travel to new places.  When I was oh so much younger, it would never have occurred to me that at my age I would feel this way.....but I do.  More importantly, I'm glad I do....because it means that my daily battles with pain have not slowed my desires to grow and learn and experience.....nor has it limited my belief that I can actually accomplish all these things!

It has been a long, somewhat stressful, and pain filled week.....but I have enjoyed it all.

To Be Myself

Is it just me or is this week moving at a snail's pace? 

The painting project is off to a good start.....though it is physically more demanding than I had anticipated.  Having to climb up and down the scaffold to reach the limbs put stress and strain on muscles I didn't know I had....even now three days later I feel twinges of pain in my arms and back.   Even so...I cannot wait to get back to it!

I began painting the sketch I had done on the wall....but with my music playing in my ears I felt a freedom to move beyond the preplanned penciled lines.  I felt the branches flowing from the end of my brush....I never wanted to stop painting.  If my body had not protested as it did I would not have stopped. I wanted to make the branches reach around the walls all through the house....and I wanted to add a stream and birds and flowers and....just create my own little paradise....all on the walls of that house.

It probably wouldn't have been what the client had in mind....but I would have loved it.

Maybe that is why the week seems to move so slowly....I can't wait for the weekend so that I can add to the mural...see more of it come to life....and in doing so, allowing more of myself to grow. There are so many things I want to do...to experience before I die.  Painting was one of them....painting without comparing myself to any other artists.....I am my own person with my own style, ideas, and passions.  And I am learning that to be me is the best way to honor my God and Creator.....after all, He made me!

Becoming An Artist

I'm beginning a new adventure today!  Some of you know I like to draw....well, make doodles on paper actually...hahaha! Someone saw some of my Tangled images and has hired me to paint a family tree mural in their home! Crazy right? I'm both nervous and excited!

Nervous because it is a really big project....a 12-14 foot "family" tree in the landing of the staircase. Don't get me wrong. I have always longed to just paint images on the walls of my apartment....although the management would strongly disapprove! And now I'm actually going to have the opportunity to create something huge!  I've done preliminary sketches and gotten input from the client who has a definite vision in mind.....made some modifications.....done the preliminary drawing on the surface to be painted and today.....today I begin painting!  Huge butterflies in my stomach!

Of course, I'm also nervous because I do not want to disappoint.....this tree is special because the client wants it done as a surprise for his daughters who will be arriving the first part of June to spend the summer with him. And his girls mean everything to him!

My excitement comes from being able to create....to take my drawing from my mind to paper to blank wall.  To be able to turn a bare stairwell into a vibrant image of the growth of a family makes my creative juices flow!  Maybe this will turn into something for me....a side job which allows me to take all those creative thoughts and turn them into images which reflect the joy I have inside. It would be so much fun to add some whimsy into unexpected places.

It is kind of neat to know I have a relatives who was an artist who also painted on walls so to speak.  Of course, he painted frescoes in churches in Italy which is a little different from what I'm attempting.  He also was a famous portrait artist having painted a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II among others.  I don't have his skill but I like to think we share some of the same passion.  I had the privilege of visiting him in his studio in Florence when I was 18....a memory I cherish.

For now, I will simply put my passion to work creating something which will bring joy to a father and his daughters.....that will be enough. For now....