A Little Book of Loving Awareness

Flowers as inspiration for artists. Flowers just are. They have shape and color and fragrance to attract the birds and insects necessary to pollinate and survive as a species. But they are so much more. They are a metaphor for the cycle of life, - budding, blooming, wilting, dying. The swift passage of life to death. They represent the most noble qualities in life: beauty, love, patience, purity, integrity, courage, tenacity. I remember stopping dead in my tracks as I almost stepped on a little daisy, pushing its head up through the crack between two pieces of pavement, with its cheeky face turned up as if to say “never give up, never give up!”. To me, painting is a mystery, - one sits before a blank canvas wondering where the journey will lead. There is the magic of creating three dimensions out of two, wanting the illusion to captivate the viewer. When I am painting I don’t know if I am inside or outside of time… it seems to have fallen away. Painting becomes meditation. The profound teachings of spiritual teachers are present between the brush strokes. A lovely thing about painting, - it is readily accessible. It is never too late to start. There are no entry exams. Just a willingness to open up and awaken your senses, and to observe (and practice). And then there is the joy. “The earth laughs in flowers.” Ralph Waldo Emerson