Sailing Grace

We’re into Day 18 of self quarantine and the reality of this “new normal” is beginning to be more apparent. While certain aspects of our lives have transitioned amazingly well – schools and teachers have adapted classroom instruction to online; churches and worship leaders are posting daily messages of hope; and local businesses have mobilized their full online presence with takeout, delivery and curbside pickup. And most of us are respecting the warnings, maintaining the 6-foot social distancing, and staying home. Yet there are the facets that bring us to brink of despair and shout outright failure. The lack of a prepared, coherent and compassionate response on the federal level is now resulting in panic and loss of lives – shortages or a complete lack of lifesaving supplies available to hospitals; front-line health care professionals experiencing the horror of a catastrophic pandemic without vaccines, supplies or even a viable treatment plan; and fluctuating (and useless) predictions as to when this will end.  I’ve tried to stay fairly neutral in the face of the current chaos within our political system – our own family is divided along party lines, so in order to endure as a loving, intact family unit we’ve a family rule of not talking about religion or politics in our together times. 

However, suddenly these partisan perspectives are gone and our focus has shifted to one of overwhelming solidarity, comfort and resilience. While some of our children have been able to transition to the “work from home” model, our oldest daughter received her furlough notice yesterday and is applying for unemployment today. The ones who are working from home are being asked to work 12 to 14-hour days to put out fires and respond to a whole host of unexpected challenges – all the while providing homeschooling and full care to their children. And all of their well-planned retirement and investment accounts are temporarily shattered with future recovery uncertain. In the midst of this, we are called to simply let go – to be kind, take care of those around us, to act with grace, and know that God continues to have a plan for good in all of our lives. As has been true down through the ages in times of misery, tyranny and disasters, God is our one true Hope.

This week’s photo continues the theme of grace - it seems to be a calming word in these times. “Sailing Grace,” is a 9” x 12” watercolor painting, and it was a joy to paint this scene of two sailors navigating quiet waters on a “red sky at night” sea. 

Grace to Glory

It’s a brave new world these days. As of this past weekend, the world is literally shutting down, and we are into self-quarantines and “sheltered in place” within our homes or residences. Due the rapid spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19), all schools, most stores and airlines are closed, restaurants are on a take-out basis only, and churches are quickly learning how to post worship videos online. Because my mom is in the elderly, most vulnerable population, her retirement complex went into lockdown late last Sunday night. Now when she needs supplies, we have to drop them off at the front door of the center and the staff will deliver the bags to her door. And the forecast for this upheaval of our normal life changes from day to day – it started as a 2-week isolation period; today, reports indicate it may extend to the middle of April or beyond. For artists and small business owners, this is an especially difficult road. All three of my representative galleries are closed and my scheduled shows for April and May are slated to be postponed or cancelled. Facing this new day, though, I am immensely grateful for healthcare professionals, janitors, grocery and convenience store staff, Ruby’s Pantry staff members who have taken to standing in parking lots in an effort to ensure that essential food is distributed to those in need, and for all those workers who show up to provide lifesaving care, keep the power and heat on in our homes, and generally work to ensure that we will survive this crisis. And I am so thankful that all our children and grandchildren are safe and have been given this time off by their companies or have the autonomy to work from home. And I’m trusting that there will surely be a light at the end of this tunnel – that time when we come out of our isolation, gather together again, and begin to rebuild our lives and communities.

This week’s painting seems to speak of better days ahead. Despite the chaos of our world (and the current snow falling at our house), Spring has officially returned! Praise the Lord! The annual maple syrup sugaring is in process and we are hearing reports of Sandhill Crane and bear sightings in our area. It’s sometimes a challenge determining a title, but I discovered a list of 50 favorite names for boats and this one seemed to fit this painting perfectly. Grace to Glory, is a 9” x12” watercolor capturing a picturesque scene – a spectacular sunset and a rowboat sheltered in a peaceful harbor.  

To the Big Lake!

This week, we were supposed to be traveling to Seattle/Tacoma, WA, for a family gathering. It's Paul's hometown, and his older sisters and their families still live there. His sister, Mavis, had flown in earlier from Phoenix to see her daughter and his other sister, Marilyn, was celebrating her birthday. So it seemed the perfect time to see them and to visit with our son, Jack. We missed seeing him at Thanksgiving when he flew into Minneapolis and then spent his whole vacation at his brother’s Keith’s house near the airport because of a huge snowstorm in the entire region. We never did get to see him! Even though we had the tickets purchased and a rental house secured, the trip was not to be. Two weeks before our scheduled flight, it became clear that Seattle was at the epicenter of the Coronavirus outbreak in US. It was an agonizing decision to make, but the day before we were to leave, we canceled our plans. It just seemed too risky to potentially expose elderly relatives in Seattle as well our family members here to this disease. Since we already had a safe place for Maddie to stay (Lupine Kennels!), we decided to take a two-day trip to the South Shore of Lake Superior. March is typically a quiet time around the lake which makes it a favorite time for us to be there! This was no different – we were the only guests staying in the Lumberman’s Inn in Iron River, WI! The trails and beaches were open, but most of the time, our car was the only one in the parking lots. Although there were still big ice chunks in the lake and the wind blew frosty off the lake, it was the perfect remedy for a long winter indoors and a wonderful time to take pictures and collect new images for future paintings. My “painting” for this week are photos from a couple of our favorite spots – a rustic cabin in the woods near the marina at Port Wing, WI, and huge sailboats in the winter boatyard at Cornucopia, WI.

Looking ahead to April!

I’m preparing for two exhibits beginning April 1 – and that’s no April Fool! 😊 I’m honored to be one of the featured artists at the artZ Gallery in Amery for the April show, “Transcending Seasons.” The month-long show will also feature the artwork of Colleen Cosgrove (plein air oil painting) and Edna Grotjahn Early (jewelry). You are especially invited to attend the Artists’ Reception on Friday, April 10, from 5-8 p.m.

And at the same time, I’m honored to have several of my watercolor paintings displayed at the Gallery in the Osceola Medical Center from April through June 2020. As you can imagine, it’s been a busy time at our house – me having a wonderful time painting and Paul doing a terrific job of framing!  

This week’s painting, Nordic Stuga, 9” x 13” on 300 lb. watercolor paper, celebrates all those ancient, small cottages, called stugas, that dot the landscape across the rural Scandianvian countryside.

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