Back to the Lilties: Flying Free

It’s March, and we are already experiencing the wild ride of this month! Last week, we had a few days of gloriously warm spring weather, followed by two days of blizzard conditions with 12” of heavy snow, and then today, it’s warm spring weather with snow melting off the roof. And so it begins . . . the wide fluctuations of temps, the start of Lent this week, Daylight Savings Time returning on Sunday . . , and slowly, but surely we are on the march into Spring.

And it’s the time of spring activities for the grands – High School plays (Music Man and Buckshot and Blossoms), baseball season for four families, and the football season for our Arizona clan. We are so looking forward to enjoying this season!

This week’s painting is a Liltie (4” x 6” on 300 lb. watercolor paper), and Flying Free is another study of the patterns of birds in this area. It is a such an incredible sight and a cacophony of sounds as the birds rise up off the lakes and ponds and take flight. We are blessed to be surrounded by nature and I’m so grateful for all of it!

February Light

And just like that, February sweeps in with increasing daylight! It is a daily reminder to be thankful for the small things and having daylight until after 5:30 p.m. seems to be one of those gifts! It has been a year of health issues for both Paul and me. After a few days of fighting what seemed to be a head cold, Paul finally went to the doctor for shortness of breath and possible pneumonia. Although he had none of the usual signs of heart distress, we were shocked to learn that he had serious heart blockage and now has three stents. We are so grateful – for quick-responding and skilled medical teams, incredible improvements in heart diagnosis and treatments, faithful and supportive prayer partners, and most of all – that Paul is improving every day and able to move forward. While it’s been a season of challenges, we are thankful for renewed health and working on positive lifestyle changes. As you can imagine, Paul is so excited and thriving all those yummy veggies and leafy greens!

I’m working to integrate some new techniques into my painting style, and for this week’s painting, I went back to one of my favorite scenes. For the painting, Grand Marais Light, 10” x 13”, I chose 300 lb. Arches Hot Press watercolor paper. This paper is much more sensitive to paint saturation and absorption, so I used Silver Black Velvet brushes, limited my palette colors and let each layer dry completely before adding the next layer. It’s a joy to work in watercolor because there is always something new to learn!

January musings

In spite of having a birthday in this month, January in the north country is always incredibly long. It’s typically a time of snow, blizzards, bitter cold weather and incredibly short days – starting about 3:30 p.m. early in the month. It’s no secret that I’ve been known to have my pjs on and the electric blanket on the bed turned on 6 by p.m. on terribly cold days! And all this can be especially hard on those of us gardeners who watch with disbelief as other regions talk about preparing to plant in February or March and we know there are at least 100 days before the ground thaws in our neck of the woods!

Yet it’s a wonderful time to be in my studio and paint. This week’s painting, Night Woods, 11” x 13” on 300 hot press watercolor paper, captures a favorite subject o’ mine – paper birch trees reflected against the closing down of the light in a deep woods.  

 

Keeping Watch

It’s the season for rejoicing, and we have so much to be thankful for. It has been a year of difficult challenges, yet we are here – with hot water for showers, warm clothes and house, loving family and friends, soft snowflakes falling outside and hearts rejoicing in God’s grace.

And good health. After months of struggling with double vision and shortness of breath, I’m so grateful that through medical expertise and God’s healing, I have renewed stamina and restored eyesight. It’s an ongoing journey, but what an incredible gift! And so grateful to Paul who took a sabbatical from his work to provide care and drive me all over! Special gratitude to all the family and faith partners who continue to walk with us and pray fervently. We feel so blessed to be part of a tremendous support community.

This week’s painting is our Christmas card to you.  During our travels to Ireland, we were captivated by the free-grazing sheep. And in considering the sheep on the hills surrounding Bethlehem on that night long ago, I think they were kin to the free-roaming flocks found on the rugged coastline along the Wild Atlantic Way. Wild, unkempt, coyote-savvy and yet somehow aware and perhaps anticipating the announcement of the angels ~ “a Savior is born, the Messiah and Lord ~ and the babe is wrapped in cloth, lying in a manger.” This watercolor painting, Keeping Watch, captures a band of free-grazers high on the Irish moorlands. We wish you a joyous Christmas and New Year!  

Part of the Process

Our family had four precious, pivotal days in Regions Hospital with my dad before he died. It was a defining moment for us – both as a family unit and as individuals. During the 10 years since, we have shared many memories of that time – sweet stories and devastating moments – all in the final watch over our beloved dad, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend to many.  One of the overwhelming messages we received from the medical team was – pay attention to the process. It seems simplistic, but that is what those critical days encompassed – we were bystanders, waiting and watching as the process unfolded. And we will be forever grateful for the compassion and skilled care of the trauma team who gently cared for my dad, and all the while helped us prepare to let him go.

And today, I’m reminded again of the importance of allowing the process to unfold. In moving through recovery from my condition, I’m beginning to realize progress, but the process seems slow. I’m ready to be “back to normal” and yet, I’m not there. It can be frustrating, but at every turn I’m reminded that I have so much to be grateful for – grateful for caring providers, for a viable treatment plan and proven medicine - and so grateful for the loving support, encouragement, prayers and kindness of those around me. It makes all the difference!

Today’s painting is a reflection of another incredible process – from starting new gardens in May to watching the garden grow and thrive in this season. August Beauty, 10” x 13” on 300-lb. cold watercolor paper, captures a happy, white coneflower, which now in mid-October, is continuing to bloom outside my front door. What a blessing!

 

Taking Flight

It has been a wonderful summer; yet it has been one of my most challenging summers. In late April, I got vertigo, and shortly after recovering from that, I woke up one morning with double vision. From there, it has been a complicated and frustrating healthcare journey through medical doctor, optometrist, ophthalmologists and next week, I’ll see a neurologist. The good news is that both eyes are working fine on their own; the bad news is that they don’t track together. So I’ve developed a system of six pairs of glasses with a blocking shade on the appropriate lens – two for reading, two for long view, and two for sunglasses – and I can be seen trading them out often throughout the day. But I need to share a most extraordinary “Godwink” that happened a few weeks ago – after an exam by a top ophthalmologist specializing in nerve and double vision issues. While I don't qualify for surgery or any other therapies, his tentative diagnosis was that my symptoms seemed to align with a condition called myasthenia gravis. If this is confirmed by the neurologist, there may be medication to treat this condition. As I was leaving his office, one of my dear prayer partners, Leslie, texted to say she had a friend who was going to call me. (I hadn’t shared with her the possible diagnosis.) The next call was from a woman named Joan who started the conversation by saying “Deb, I understand from Leslie that you are struggling with double vision. I wanted to call and share my story with you. I think you may be on a similar journey. When I was in my early 70’s, my husband and I were serving a church in Upper Michigan, and I woke up one morning with double vision. After three years of frustration and visiting doctor after doctor, we moved to the Twin Cities to be near our children, and I was finally diagnosed by a neuro-ophthalmologist with myasthenia gravis. He prescribed medication which I took for about three weeks, and when I woke up that morning, my eyesight was completely restored. I’m now in my 80’s and my eyesight is fine.” I was totally flabbergasted at what I was hearing, and at the same time, joy was beginning to replace the disappointment that had been in my spirit. Joan continued: “How many doctors have you seen?” When I responded, “Four, and going to a neurologist in September,” Joan continued: “Then you are absolutely at the right place in your journey. I’m calling to encourage you and tell you that there is hope.” Isn’t that amazing? God shows up in the microscopic details of our lives, and through the kind act of a stranger, He delivered a message of hope to me. In Joan’s act of reaching out, we quickly moved from strangers to kindred spirits – bound together by shared experiences and our shared faith that God will indeed keep his promise for good in our lives. I’m so grateful for Paul, supportive family and friends, and for incredible surprises of joy. We walk in hope.

During this journey, it’s most fun for me to paint the Lilties – those small watercolors. And this time of year, it’s been glorious to watch the Sandhill cranes, geese and small birds gathering and practicing for their journey south. This week’s painting, Taking Flight, a 4” x 6” watercolor, captures a gaggle of geese lifting up from the lake.

Back to the river!

It’s the middle of August, and it seems like the summer has just whooshed by. But I’m so enjoying the dip in the intensity of sunlight and the softer humidity that begins to signal Fall. And I’m getting ready to deliver a collection of my latest original watercolors to Plum Bottom Gallery in Door County later in September. It seems a good time to paint Lilties. This week’s painting, Around the Bend, is a 4” x 6” watercolor, and captures a bend in a quiet river.