Now...Remains Calm

Remains Calm (in process) 30 x 40 oils

The question that immediately comes to mind: "what do I do now?" Turmoil about the future - can't change what has not occurred. Concern about the past - it's gone, move on! The present...it's quiet in my world, no clear and present danger. Remain calm with the quiet. The outside is cold, but I am inside. I am safe...Remain Calm.

Utilitarian

Expand! 18 x 24 pastels

I am a plow. Not something (someone) to be put on a pedestal, shined up and cherished. I am to serve when dirt needs to be broken up, to get close to the grit and grime and pushed over. I am to be placed in an old barn, or if rain comes while I'm working, to be left where I am until I can be used again. The attention I receive is when I'm dull (witted) and need to be sharpened for additional use. If allowed to sit long, I get a coat of rust, that may or may not cause problems for you later. But typically, I'm left on the sidelines, until someone needs work done.

I serve my purpose. I am a tool to be used. There are those, whose very design facilitates their participation in the spotlight! They are shined and polished, covered with chrome and meant to be fondled with loving hands. There are those who are made more glorious by adding illumination from within, so their "inner glow" is that much more evident. That's not me; I am base and simple.

In Process

(In Process) A Tea Rose for Monique 12 x 16 acrylic

Always

On my way

Arriving only to find I should go further

Or over there

Stay a while

I can't

There's someone/where/when

Just over the horizon

Yesterday is so fa away

Though I remember parts

Like it was 3 minutes ago

Today I woke before dawn

And before I knew it

The day was gone

So is it any wonder that I should move like that "Lucky Old Sun"

I'll be here for a while

But I'm leaving as soon as the wind picks up

And the chariot of fire swings my way

I'll be bigger then

Or I'll be smaller

In that next place

That arriving destination

I'll be something else

Out of The Raw

Phoenix 18 x 24 pastels

Spinning Blue Orb 18 x 24 pastels

Filtered Divinity 12 x 18 pastels

Rise! 18 x 24 pastels

We try to describe it

And in truth

We should revel in the power that is greater description

Words

Don't fail

They form

They capsulize

Colors

And descriptions of color

Emotions

Concepts

Inventions

Are

Our way of holding it

Managing it

Riding it like a creature we tamed

And yet

You can examine it

Study it

From now 'til

And it changes

Grows larger than you can tame

Again

And it changes you

Because this _____

Is greater

Untamed

And will be

When you

As you know "you"

Are someone/somewhen else

Notes on slips of paper

I'm Listening 24 x 36 Oils

Expectation 24 x 36 Oils

A Reply 24 x 36 Oils

Grocery lists
Picking up food for the family
Lines for a poem I'm working on
Random thoughts
Random thoughts
Random thoughts
"I love you"
"I love you" in a beautiful poem
A scripture to lift someone's spirit

An opportunity to gather this slip of paper, that sticky note, that scented note paper...parts of a puzzle, thoughts, activities, feelings and 'what-nots'... not much, but put together and a snapshot of life is gathered. And snapshot hints of the whole.

Flat, White, with a Little Grit

This is my preference, or should I say my usual "tabula rasa;" my clean slate. This is where most of my work begins. A sheet of newsprint paper, watercolor paper or a primed canvas. Now mind you, at any given moment, I might have a concept in my head regarding what I'm aiming for, or my head may be as blank as that surface, but the act of creation becomes it's own inspiration. Once I place the black of a stick of charcoal, the blue, orange, red, green, or heaven forbid, yellow, on that surface, choice, after, choice, after choice are made! And the direction, the path is laid out before me!

Miracle

Whether you acknowledge it or not, they are happening to you, around and far away,  EVERY DAY! Your eyes are closed,  slumber holds you captive. Wake, and see what amazing things are happening around you!

The Ancients

Wisdom of the ages doesn't end and begin with the old. There is knowledge and insight to be shared at any age. When an individual opens their mind to take in life, experience the moment, whether that moment is joyous or sad, in that moment, they experience liberation! And in that moment, they are available to perceive the wisdom and depths of the ALL.

Enough - republished from July

This lesson I'm learning; I don't have it mastered and for the moment, that's adequate. Each morning I wake early, probably earlier than most. No matter how early I rise, it never seems to be enough time. But it is; I get up with enough time to write, perhaps dip my brush in paint and dab at the canvas and when possible, squeeze in a few stretches before getting to the gym. I never seem to get enough time in the gym, but in retrospect, it is enough time. I get in everything I want to do in the amount time I have.

When I oversleep or fall back to sleep, and when I wake, on those days, I feel like I've lost something of the morning. It's especially difficult when I have to skip writing or the gym, where I'm so exhausted, I can't get generate enough energy to make it out the door for exercise and back in time to get to work, it feels like I'm slipping. But on those days, I realize I needed that sleep. When I think of the amount of sleep I get each night and how much is supposedly required to have energy for the day, I'm woefully short! But when I consider what I accomplish in a day, while I could use more sleep, I get enough to be effective!

Enough; it may seem like your life is missing something. It may feel like you don't have everything you need. At some point, you will learn to live without "it" or you will get up and go after it. But when you do whatever you decide to do, if you allow yourself time to appreciate what "is" in the moment, you will find you have everything you need.

5:02 AM

Entry point. The place where reality is set aside, when I enter the world of imagination and creativity. All the prep work is completed and I'm ready to begin my quest. Any thing in this space is great place to focus; it is a rich environment with stories and tales and adventures! And each day, I am fortunate to enter this place!

No admission fee is charged to take this ride; admission is free! And quite honestly, I visit throughout the day! I "sneak away" from the world of software testing and tan cubicles even while my body remains fixed in the chair, to bring life to this old mind! To write, to draw and paint; these are my passages to an amazing land! Oh, what's so fascinating? What's to be seen there? Skies where clouds rest just above head and water, crystal clear, full of glittering fish, large or small! Beautiful horses, with gleaming chestnut brown hides and white and black. Their "neigh" is loud as a trumpet and their trot like small thunderclaps! There are people busy working, but enjoying every moment of it. Women who love their men and their children and husbands who cherish their wives above everyone else! Music is heard every hour of the day and well into the night. And in this place, joy, peace and love rule the land! The adventure in this land is a result of exploration and it is an endless journey!

Come, go with me one morning! As a matter of fact, I invite you to go any time you are so inclined! Simply step away from the concerns of this world and let your mind take you where joy, love and peace rule!

Feather Lands

Slowly sailing

Down

   Down

        Down

And over

Back and

Forth

Falling slowly

A tiny breeze

Brings it over here

And back there

Again

Absentmindedly

You observe

Half interested

Your thoughts

Floating

Here

      There

And back to the feather

Slowly it lands

The dance ends



...merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream...

Get to It

I tried to fight it, I tried to resist, but it's in my bones and in my heart; Get to It, Eddie! These days, my life is less "pulled in many directions" and more pairing down the list of warring factions! I get to paint - if I get up early enough - and write as much as time permits. I take a mid-day break to walk and see my beautiful city. Work is demanding, but I'm surrounded by people who are certain, capable and helpful.

But there is an urgency to my life; there is an undercurrent that says there's more to my life than taking occasional breaks, painting "pretty pictures" and providing for the family. There are times when I feel that "unfinished work," that nagging sense that I've got far more to do! Quite honestly, while I was certain "art" would provide a sense of destiny and a feeling that I've arrived, so far, it's only intensified that sense that there is more discovery and revealing to come.

Urgent, insistent...maybe it's self-discovery, maybe it's a deeper relationship with God and maybe both. All I know is, I'm not done yet!

Hang Your Hat Here

Come in,

Sit down,

Take a load off.

Let's talk

Been a long day?

Having a hard time?

Just sit down,

Put your feet up,

Rest your nerves for a bit.

You know it doesn't get easier,

Worrying about this and that,

Holding on to old pain,

And letting it turn your gut to stank.

Sit down for a while,

And ease your mind.

We don't have to talk say anything about what's bothering you or who done you wrong.

We don't have to talk at all,

Just sit down and relax your mind.

All we do is worry about this and that,

Interrupting our worry to take a bite,

Take a walk,

And splash water on our face,

Too worried to rest,

Too tired to sleep,

You ignoring the cry of your soul for rest.

Come on sit down for just a little bit,

And rest your hat and your head over here.

Pour it Out

This would be a great image to render: a picture of a person (or a series with different individuals) pouring out their brain and pouring it on to, people, places and social concerns. And Eddie Hudson has been allowed to do the same through this medium. I appreciate the time, the space, and allowing me a place to "drain my brain!"

It occurred to me as I rounded the corners in my office and landed in my cubicle space, that I could write and write and write! That as I sit down to manage the software testing for another, I could easily formulate a thousand "thoughts" in the time it takes to sit at my desk and develop test scripts. I could talk of the lion and dragons, the victories and defeats, the love and loss of living in this life. And sitting in that chair, before I knew it, there were at least three ideas jotted quickly. My restriction is that I am compensated for software testing, not creatively pouring out the content of my mind! Oh the agony!

On one level, I have to treat the transition from working for someone else to working to benefit the world, as I would moving from formal education to a career. I have to factor in lessons to be learned, studied and evaluate my progress. I have to consider the "classes" I have to attend and schedule them out in the future. I have to decide when I am ready to "graduate" to a career of "creativity." I am eternally grateful for being allowed to express, to pour out what is in my heart and mind. And I look forward to doing so with greater dedication and frequency.

Near

Not far away,

Close,

Not somewhere else

And distracted by other things

Your attention wrapped in my proximity

Face-to-face

Hand-to-hand

Body-to-body

No yesterday

No loss

No tomorrow

My only hope

You

And my heart beating

And breathing

with yours

One

No

Adult responsibility

But us