The last time I posted I was in the middle of the J a day for St. Jude’s project.  I was working at the flower shop and things were clicking right along.   Oh but how a moment can change your life.  I woke up the next day and my computer died.  I don’t mean kind of dead where you take it to the computer doctor for repair.   I mean dead like green and red data lines flowing in a vertical pattern when I booted her up.  She served me well for over six years but she was done.  I started saving my pennies for a new one and then my mom came for a visit.  She surprised me with a gift of computer cash and I was back in business!  Or so I thought.

She went home and two days later I got a phone call.  My precious mother had fallen getting out of bed and broken her neck.  Yes, that’s right.  She got up to get out of bed, fell and hit her head on the floor.  She broke her C1 & C2 vertebrae.  These are the two that control breathing and motor function.  It is nothing less than a miracle that she is not only alive but is having no motor skill or breathing issues.

They put her in a neck brace and she had to wear it day and night for about  2 months.  During this time we noticed that she was having difficulty remembering things and also some difficulty doing math.  Then she fell again.  No injury thank God but another fall.  Then one night she was out having dinner with her companion.  He had gone to get the car to pull around and pick her up.  He looked into his rear view mirror and she was laying face down on the grass.  He immediately took her to the ER and they kept her.

My mother is very independent and was anxious to get out of the hospital.  The doctors told her that she wasn’t going anywhere until they could surmise why she kept falling.  After a battery of tests they discovered that she had some very serious vascular issues with her heart.  The blood that is usually pumped to her brain was being rerouted into her chest wall because of a malformation in one of her main arteries.  This is what was causing the falls as well as her memory issues.

After a 5 1/2 hour surgery with two neurosurgeons working on her at the same time, one from the arm and the other through the groin, she was put in ICU.  We took turns going up to visit her and were both thrilled and relieved when she woke up and was doing well.  She was black and blue from the surgery but said she was feeling mostly okay other than the soreness.  The doctors had warned us that there was a risk of her brain swelling after the surgery because of the restored blood flow.   After a few days she was released and we got to bring her home on Thanksgiving day.  The day after Thanksgiving I had just finished taking a shower when I heard her screaming.  This was a scream like I’d never heard before and I hope I never hear again.  I knew something was wrong.  I ran into the kitchen where she was sitting and she just kept saying her arm was hurting.  We called 911 and back to the hospital we went.

They gave her some steroids to reduce the swelling in her arm and gave her a shot of morphine and after several hours, sent her back home.  We were all really surprised by this.  We figured they would keep her since the general consensus seemed to be that she had thrown a blood clot.

The following Monday she went to a follow-up with her doctor and he hears something unusual in her arm.  He admits her for more tests and they find out she’s got a tear in the artery in her arm.  That is what was causing all of the pain.  So they patched that up and now she is back home and recovering.

I have to tell you that I have always known that my mother was a very strong woman.  But seeing her go through all of this and watching her work so hard to get back to health has given me a new respect for her. We had a lovely Christmas together.  I made her a “No Worries Wanda” doll from paperclay.  (I’ll post about Wanda later.)  She loved her and that made me really happy.

Just before I left Florida we had a long talk.  We encouraged each other to keep moving forward and we made a promise to each other that we were both going to work to get healthy be the best we could be.  I feel closer to my mom than I’ve ever felt in my life and she says she feels the same way.  I gotta tell you, it’s pretty amazing.

So, true to my word to my mom and myself I came home and got busy painting.  I had prepped several canvases and then I went to lunch with a friend of mine.  We were talking about how life can really throw you a curve ball sometimes and she said, “That’s why they invented alcohol.”  We laughed and I said, “Some of us don’t drink!  It’s just life on the rocks.”  That got me to thinking about how prayer had been such a part of my mothers healing and how much it comforts me.  A lady that is part of a forum I belong too even asked her mom to go to the wall in Israel and say a prayer for my mother.  I can’t tell you how touched I was by this.  My mother had people praying for her all around the world!

All of these things gave me the idea to paint an angel.  I titled this piece “Prayer on the Rocks”.  I love the double meaning of the title.  Here are the pictures of the progress of the painting.  It’s now available for sale at my Etsy shop.

First few layers for shading

Adding more detail and texturing her wings

Almost there but something still missing.

A flower halo and glaze and she's finished.

Well my sweet babies, that’s it for now.  If you read through the entire post you get a gold star!  LOL!  I’m home again and getting things back on track.  I will be posting daily again and I look forward to reconnecting with all of you.  I think it’s funny how we don’t realize just how much we need others until we don’t have them around for a time.  I’m so glad to be back and I hope to hear for you all soon.  Be kind to yourselves and remember you are loved beyond measure!

Tonight I want to share a couple of things with you.  The first thing I would like to talk about is the feeling of hopelessness and general malaise that so many people are dealing with right now.  While, it’s true that the US economy is struggling right now, it is not true that the end of the world has come.  I know people are hurting and many people are struggling right now.  I just want to reach out to all of you and tell you that it’s going to get better.  We are not a nation of quitters.  We are a nation of overcomers and champions!  Sometimes we get so caught up in focusing on what is wrong around us that we forget to step back and focus on what is fabulous. 

I had dinner with a friend the other night and we were discussing things that we can do to make life better for those people we come into contact with.  There were the usual ideas of sharing food, clothes etc.  I made the comment that sometimes it’s the little things in life that people remember the most.  My friend looked at me and said, “Yeah it is.  It’s amazing what a touch can convey.  A warm hug or a sincere smile and compliment.  What it really boils down to is love.  It’s all about giving love.”  And you know what?  He’s exactly right. 

I was doing a bit of reading today and I ran across this quote from Alistair Cooke……I think it’s something worth sharing and something I definitely want to remind myself of. 

“In the best of times, our days are numbered anyway.  So it would be a crime against nature for any generation to take the world crisis so solemnly, that it put off enjoying those things for which we were designed in the first place: the opportunity to do good works, to enjoy friends, to fall in love, to hit a ball and to bounce a baby.” 

With these things in mind I wanted to show you some cool stuff.  Remember my joy at finding that little box of pastels the other day?  Well I have more funky groovy kinda news.  I cleaned out the rest of that trolly and not only did I find another box of the oil pastels but I found a box of chalk pastels as well as a small box of water based oil paints!  I think I need to reorganize and clean more often.  Just sayin.  Here is a pic of the newly found booty.

New found pastels

Aqua Oils

 What is really funny about me finding all of these things is that I discovered them after I made a trip to the art supply store to purchase some new oil pastels.  I tried my sweet babies.  I tried with all my might to resist them.  I did!  I did!  I lusted after them online and closed the window and did some sketching.  I went back and lusted some more, closed the window and did some more sketching.  But, it was too late.  It was like some sort of art porn had possessed me and I had to have these oil pastels.  As I entered the doors the air conditioner hit my face, wafting me in with a gentle caress.  Yes, this was going to happen, there was no use fighting it anymore.  After a few minutes of letting my fingers dance over several different boxes, my choice was made.  I eagerly walked up to the register and purchased this box of deeply colored beauties.  They were mine.  I loved them and they loved me back.  And here they are in all of their colorful glory….

New Oil Pastels

 I used oil pastels to complete J122.  Do you remember it?  This was the initial sketch…..

Initial Cactus J Sketch

 And here is the finished painting.  I decided to go whimsical with this piece.  I know I know….what a surprise. Heh.  I titled this J122 Hot Snack.

J122 Hot Snack

 Here is a close up of the Lizard.  I had to put some pink cowgirl boots on her.  I mean seriously, a girl needs to be stylish when she’s munchin on hot chili peppers! 

Hot Snack Close Up

 So there you have it my angels.  I hope you found a smile or two here tonight.  You make me smile every time you visit, leave comments or email me.  I cherish it when you share with me and allow me to share in your joys.  I’m making the decision to look for the positive in my life and in those around me.  Won’t you join me in this?  Perhaps we will be a part of the solution instead of part of the problem.  I love you.  You’re spectacular and brilliant.  I’m blessed to know you!

First things first tonight.  We have a winner for the soap and perfume giveaway.  Congratulations Ricky!  For those of you who didn’t win this time, don’t give up.  There will be another giveaway next month as well. 

Today I finished the stamp bottle.  I’m so happy with the way it turned out.  What do y’all think?  I found a brass button and glued it to the top.  I love the way the dome of the button gives it a finished look.  I also used some of my bohemian fibers to wrap around the top.  It really gives the bottle some more color and ties it all together with the color of the stamps.  Finally I added her necklace back after sealing her stamps and then tied a little key from the top as well.  The key is a reminder that we all have the key to find our “message in a bottle”.  We simply have to open our hearts to possibilities.

Completed Stamp Bottle

This bottle will be on sale in my Etsy shop tomorrow afternoon.  I hope she finds a good home.     This is one of those pieces that I kinda fell in love with while making it. 

I want you to know that you are making me smile right now.  Mostly because you are visiting but also because I’m sort of picturing you rollerskating in your pj’s over roads made out of rainbow candy.  Looks like lots of fun.  I wonder if I can attach skates to my pink bunny slippers?  I’ll get back to you on that.  Sleep sweet tonight and dream wonderful dreams.  You just might see them come true!  Much love always.

I have just recently discovered an artist by the name of Joni Hutton Nickrent.  This woman does amazing and whimsical oil pastels that just speak to my heart.  Each and every one of her pieces are colorful and deep and so full of expression and joy.  I just had to share her with you because, well, how can you not share beauty and talent with people you love?  She is working on a series right now titled “Hat Trick Collection”.  These little cuties have completely entranced me.  Here is the first one I saw in this series.  (Thank God for the person who commented on Peachbutter’s Facebook page or I may never have seen these.) 

Ladybug Ladybug by Joni Hutton Nickrent

 Isn’t she beautiful and amazing?  Did I mention amazing?  Joni captures such sweet expressions in her work and the colors are breathtakingly beautiful to me.  She is also such a sweet person.  I sent her a message on Facebook and just told her that I love her work and asked what medium she uses.  She answered me right away and told me that she uses oil pastels with layers and layers of color.  If you want to take a look at her beautiful blog it is here Pop Art Minis.   I will warn you before you pop over though, take something to drink with you.  You will be there for a while.  I am not being paid or compensated in any way for this post.  In fact Joni doesn’t even know I’m blogging about her yet.  I am just simply IN LOVE with her work. 

Now, you would think that discovering an artist whose work speaks so deeply to me would be enough.  But you peeps know me and you know I am a bit greedy when it comes to art supplies.  As soon as Joni told me she used oil pastels I thought to myself, “Man I wish I had some of those!”  But alas, I’ve never worked with them so I had no such yummies in my supplies.  I made a mental note to purchase some later and moved on.

Today as I was looking for one of my old art journals I was digging through one of my craft trolleys and in the bottom drawer was a little yellow box with a sun on the label.  It didn’t look familiar to me so I pulled it from the bottom of the drawer to investigate further.  Well kids let me tell you, I almost fell out of my chair.  The little yellow box was holding 12 little oil pastels!  OH.MY.GOD!  Seriously Universe?  SCORE!  Thank you!  *insert silly girlish squeal here*  This is a box of oil pastels my mom bought me when we were in Maui in 2005.  I had totally and completely forgotten about them because I had never used them.

It’s just a little set of “junior artist” student quality pastels but oh how they sent my heart a flutter.  I couldn’t wait to try them.  I have been searching for a way to make some of my work deeper and richer in color and I wondered if I would be able to accomplish that with these.  So of course I had to give it a try. 

The first thing I did was draw an eye.  I’m really comfortable drawing eyes so it seemed like a good way to try out the pastels.  I fell instantly in love!  Ohhhh the way they blend!  Oh the depth of color!  And these are just student pastels with a very limited color palette.  I can only imagine what the professional set must be like to work with. 

Oil Pastel Eye

See the little squiggles up in the corner?  These pastels are just cut round tubes of color.  No point whatsoever.  I was trying to create a point but they are a bit too hard so I just decided to use the edge for my sharp lines.  Not as clean a line as I would like but not bad for a first attempt.

Next I played with a flower.  I was trying to go for a watercolor effect on this one.  It’s okay but I’m not really crazy about it.  It was a good learning experience though.  I found out that oil pastels don’t blend well on my sketch pad unless I have loaded it up heavily with them.

Oil Pastel Flower

Then I decided that it might be fun to draw a rose and then just lightly color it.  I was going for the antique color/sepia type look.  Here is the sketch in progress. 

Rose sketch in progress

I liked the rose but wanted to add a but as well.  I was also toying with the idea of a baby blue background at this point. 

Rose sketch completed

Now came the oil pastels.  I was anticipating a very pretty result.  I was actually kind of giddy about this.  It was funny because I haven’t felt giddy in a long time.

Rose sketch with oil pastel highlights

Soooooo, it didn’t turn out as I had expected.  I think it’s a combination of problems here.  First of all, I think the detail of the sketch was lost when I tried to add the color.  I think this is because oil pastels are heavy and not well suited for fine detailed work.  I also believe I would have been much happier with the end result on this if I had used colored pencils or even watercolor pencils.  Oh well, live and learn.  I had fun with it and learned a valuable lesson.  And after all, isn’t that what creative freedom is all about? 

I was doing the laundry while I was creating all of these things today.  As I was drying the final load I decided it might be fun to create todays J with oil pastels.  This J is totally and completely inspired by Joni’s work.  I just let go and drew in deep and rich tones and blended and smiled.  I felt like a little kid today.  You know, the one who sits in class with glue and crayons and glitter and is transported into some magical kingdom?  Yup, the was me today.  I was all over it. 

Oil Pastel J a day.

So thank you Universe for showing me how much you love me today.  Thank you for the beautiful people you continuously put in my life.  Thank you for surrounding me with beauty and life and love.  I am a happy girl today and I feel the power of God’s shining light warming me from the inside out. 

Thank you for visiting tonight.  I’m so grateful for each and every one of you.  You are deeply colorful, wonderfully beautiful and rich in the joy you bring to the world.  I’m so happy to know you are here.

Tonight I wanted to share some things with you about my struggles with some fears.  You know, there are many different types of strength.  There is the physical strength that we as humans admire.  The stamina that we witness as athletes work through their pain in order to reach the finish line.  They are often rewarded with tangible things such as medals, trophies and even t-shirts when they finish a race. 

Then there is the strength of a soldier and that soldiers family.  ( I use soldier as a generic term here because this really applies to every branch of the military. )  The soldier has to overcome a fear that runs through their veins like electricity when they are in battle.  The family back home has to overcome this same sort of electrified fear every time they hear of a battle close to where their loved one is stationed.  There are thousands of people doing this on a daily basis and very few of them ever see a medal.  That doesn’t make their service or their strength any less meaningful.  And to any of you who are military or family of military, I just want to say thank you.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

There is the strength we see when someone is dealing with a terminal illness.  Often the person with the disease handles things much better than those around them.  These people look death right in the face and find the courage to live their lives to the fullest while they can.  This was the case with my family when my sister was dying of cancer. 

Then there is the everyday person like me.  I don’t have a spouse in service who I worry about every night before I sleep.  I am not dealing with any major medical issues.  And yet, I have fears.  I have a fear that I won’t be accepted because of my size.  I have fears about my age, my art, my business and whether or not I’m the absolute best mommy I can be to my dog Maddison. 

Today was really hard for me.  I was really missing my sister today.  I mean really missing her.  I spent the better part of the day trying to stop crying and wondering why it was so strong today.  My sister has been gone since 2004.  Most of the time, I’m okay.  Most of the time I remember her fondly and tell her I love her and move on with my day.  Then there are days like today that feel like I can’t quite catch my breath. 

I realized today that there are certain aspects of my life that I’m unhappy with.  Mainly I’m unhappy with myself because I let my fears stop me from living my life to the fullest sometimes.  Well you know what?  I’m SICK of it.  I read recently that we are all just one decision away from changing our lives.  Today I made a decision.  I’m not going to live in fear anymore.  I know I will still have fears but I refuse to let them stop me from living a full and happy life.  There  is a strength in allowing others to see your vulnerabilites.  This is why I’m sharing mine with you tonight. 

A friend who is on a forum I frequent said the other day, “I want memories, not regrets.”  That really hit home with me.  I love people.  I really do love them.  I try to live my life in such a way as to never intentionally hurt others.  Now it’s time for me to start giving myself that same love and respect.  I’ve decided that I’m pretty groovy and I deserve good things in life.  There will be no medals awared, but oh the rewards will be magnificent!

So if you are dealing with fears too then I invite you to join me in my new mantra.  Die fear die!  I have a passion for life and the courage to live it!  Blessings and love to you all.

I worked at the flower shop today for half a day.  It was one of those days that I had an opportunity to do a lot of thinking because it wasn’t very busy.  My mind was very active today and I had several new ideas for my art.  I also had some new ideas for some of my birds.  I put them away for a while because I was getting sort of obsessed with them.  Don’t get me wrong, I love them.  I think they are cute and funny and they make people smile.  It’s just that I was spending so much time concentrating on new patterns and new outfits for them that I kind of put other things on the back burner. 

Today I pulled them back out and smiled when I realized how many of them are so close to being finished.  I also giggled a bit when I opened the second box to see how many of them are waiting for their wings, tails and beaks.  Here are a couple of pics so you can see what I am talking about.

Almost there!

Waiting on completion.

 I’m going to make some of these into cake toppers.  I’m also going to be revealing a new line of birds in about a month or so.  I’m still working out the details for selling them. 

I also wanted to show y’all the solid perfume I told you about yesterday.  I’m also working on a different container for these.  You know me, I can’t do anything without changing it up a bit.  LOL!  A wonderful friend told me this week that I do things with a “flair”.  That made me smile because honestly, I don’t do that on purpose.  This little tin has a plastic insert that holds the solid perfume.  It’s the perfect size for the purse or pocket.  I also like these because if you are traveling, you can take it with you on the plane.  I’m thinking of making some sets of these.  I think it would be cool to be able to have several scents and not have to worry about space or any travel restrictions.

Solid Perfume TinSolid Perfume Tin Opened

Open Tin of Solid Perfume

This scent is a very light and clean with just a touch of spice.  It’s really a lovely scent. 

I had lunch today with a friend.  We talked about changes and how life is too short to live it in fear and worry.  I’m so glad that I am surrounded by so many loving and wonderful friends.  I’m also grateful for the opportunities to be a good friend.  It’s all about balance and the give and take in life.  I am working very hard at becoming better in all areas of my life.  It feels good to have people who love me , and it’s good to have those friends who cheer me on as I reach my goals and dreams. 

I hope that I am a cheerleader and encourager to you as well.  You are divine and delicious and you deserve all good things in life!  Enjoy your weekend and don’t forget to give away some love this week!  It always comes back bigger and better to you than it was when you sent it out.  How cool is that?!    Pay it forward baby!

In case you didn’t notice, I’m a bit stoked about this.  My first few attempts were good but definitely too soft to survive shipping during the summer months.  I am in love with solid perfumes for several reasons.  The main reason being I can put them in my purse and take them anywhere.  They are small and don’t take up much room and they won’t ever leak out of a bottle all over my purse and the contents therein. 

I was going to post a picture of it, but my camera has dead batteries.  I guess it’s all the pictures I took yesterday.  So I’ll have to give you a visual tomorrow.  So on to the giveaway info.  This months giveaway is a bar of my summer citrus soap and a solid perfume. 

The rules to play the game are the same as always.  Leave a comment on the blog within the next week.  On July 22nd I’ll pick a winner.  If you don’t have a link in your signature for me to get in touch with you, please feel free to email me and let me know you entered.  If you win I’ll email you.  If you have a link in your siggy I’ll post there to let you know.  I’ll also post the winner here. 

Good Luck to everyone and let the game begin!   

P.S.  In case nobody told you today, you are a strikingly beautiful and magnificently made creature.  I’m also digging the orange/hot pink aura thing you have goin on tonight.  Groovy!

The first thing I did was sort through some stamps this morning.  I wanted some earth tones to use for a bottle I am altering.  The pile in the back is the one I used on the bottle.  See all the pretty colors in the front pile?  I’ve already got another idea for a way to use these. 

Sorted Stamp Piles

 I love working with stamps.  It’s such a groovy feeling when I’m creating art out of tiny little pieces of paper that already have art on them.  It’s always interesting to me to see what comes from my spirit as I’m working.  I often have an idea of what I want to make but rarely have it completely planned out.  Most of the time I’m happy with the results. 

Bare bottle and stamps

 Here is the bottle before anything was added.  I used a very fine grit sandpaper to sand it and help with adhesion.  I was gifted two of these bottles and I love them.  They were used to hold wine in their first life.  Now they will add some happiness and joy to someones space instead of ending up in a land fill somewhere. 

Beginning of stamping process

 So far so good.  I love the way the colors of the stamps come together.  Even though this bottle is personal size, it’s going to be full of personality when it’s done. 

All the stamps are on

Now that all the stamps have been attached, it’s time to embellish and finish the top of the bottle.  I found a chain with some burnt orange beads.  I think this will be the perfect necklace for this bottle. 

Necklace for bottle.

Tomorrow I’ll have to go to the store and buy some corks.  I found, to my dismay, that I’m completely out of them.  Oh woe is me, now I have to go to the supply store.  hehe 

As I was sorting stamps today I ran across a few that I took out for later projects.  These just struck me a particularly lovely and I wanted to share them with you.  Tiny little works of art they are.

Pretty Stamps

Here are some other things I finished today.  The first is part of the J a day collection.  Can you see the J’s along the top of the pot?

Daisy J a day Pot

I also finished this little wash basin.  I had painted the lines on this awhile back but simply couldn’t decide what else I wanted on it.  Today the daisies just spoke to me and they seem a perfect fit for this sweet and spring basin.  I think it would be perfect holding hair goodies or makeup.  What do you think?

Small basin sitting on stack of boxes.

Ignore the boxes it’s sitting on.  LOL  I told you I wasn’t organized today.  I did want you to see it though.  I also painted this sign today.  I’m really happy with the way it turned out.  I absolutely adore butterflies, but they have been a bane to my existence for so long.  I have really struggled to learn to paint them.  This is one of the first attempts that I’m actually happy with.  I know I will only improve now.  Isn’t it funny how once we conquer something that it no longer controls us? 

Roses and Butterflies

I also had a brainstorm about two pieces that have been sitting in my studio for a while.  Dare to take a guess on what I’m planning?  I’ll post pictures as soon as I’m done. 

Two mystery pieces

I also found a bottle while I was looking for corks today that I had forgotten all about.  Isn’t the shape spectacular?  She also has her top which is a huge plus.  I still don’t know how I’m going to alter this one, but I’ve put it up on the shelf so it can tell me what it wants to be soon.

Nifty bottle

Well my fellow creators that’s it for tonight.  I hope you enjoyed the tour of the studio.  I’ll be announcing this months giveaway friday.  Thank you as always for stopping in!  I love to see you here.  Thank you for all of your love and support.  You help me live my dreams everyday.  Do you have any idea how special that makes you?  I also want to thank those of you who have been telling your friends about me.  It’s so cool to see new likes on the Peachbutter Studio Arts page on Facebook and it’s really awesome when I get emails from y’all.  Have a fantastic day and tune in tomorrow for more art, creativity and love!

There’s a girl in the corner
With tear stains on her eyes
From the places she’s wandered
And the shame she can’t hide

She says, “How did I get here?
I’m not who I once was.
And I’m crippled by the fear
That I’ve fallen too far to love”

But don’t you know who you are,
What’s been done for you?
Yeah don’t you know who you are?

You are more than the choices that you’ve made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,
You are more than the problems you create,
You’ve been remade.

Well she tries to believe it
That she’s been given new life
But she can’t shake the feeling
That it’s not true tonight

She knows all the answers
And she’s rehearsed all the lines
And so she’ll try to do better
But then she’s too weak to try

But don’t you know who you are?
You are more than the choices that you’ve made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,

You are more than the problems you create,
You’ve been remade.

You are more than the choices that you’ve made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,

You are more than the problems you create,
You’ve been remade.

‘Cause this is not about what you’ve done,
But what’s been done for you.
This is not about where you’ve been,
But where your brokenness brings you too

This is not about what you feel,
But what He felt to forgive you,
And what He felt to make you loved.

You are more than the choices that you’ve made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,
You are more than the problems you create,
You’ve been remade.

You are more than the choices that you’ve made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,
You are more than the problems you create,
You’ve been remade.

You’ve been remade
You’ve been remade.
You’ve been remade.
You’ve been remade.

God has really been showing me his love this week.  I’m so grateful for this.  I hope your day was most magnificent.  I hope you are feeling the love today too.  Sweet dreams you fantastic creature of love and life!

The magic of forgiveness is the freedom that it brings.  Suddenly I was no longer burdened with the heaviness of resentment, anger and bitterness.  Suddenly I was free to live my life on my terms and in love.  And you know what else happened?  Some of the people I forgave, actually began to change.  Perhaps they sensed I no longer had barbed wire fences up when I was around them.  Perhaps they felt the light coming from me.  I’m not sure.  What I am sure of is that I changed.  And really, that is what is most important to me. 

I refuse to waste my life holding on to anger and plotting revenge against people who hurt me on purpose.  I refuse to give them space in my head or my heart.  That is reserved for wonder and magic and love.  Life is too short to live it any other way. 

So we all know what happens when we make a decision in this direction right?  Yup, you guessed it.  Something inevitably happens to let us practice this new direction.  This week, the wonder dog let me practice.  I was in the bathroom and I heard a familiar sound.  It was the sound of thievery in the kitchen.  The wonder dog stole an applesauce cup from the counter and proceeded to lick it clean.  Now even though I discourage this behavior, I don’t really blame her for her penchant for fruit as I share this same love of all things fruity. 

The problem arose when she got said cup stuck under the shelf in my studio and was unable to retrieve it from underneath.  So, given this dilemma what is a dog to do?  Why knock all the things off the shelf and attack it from another angle naturally.  This would all be well and good except she destroyed two canvases in the process.  One of these was already primed with a background for a commissioned piece.  Can you say, “Mommy was NOT happy?”  Here is the picture of her destruction. 

See the applesauce cup under the shelf?