Before Christmas--Solstice nears

Solstice--shorter days, years, lives--5 by 7 watercolor

The shortest day of the year looms, as the days and the year get shorter...like our lives.
Winter sets in, the light as brittle as the dropping temperatures.
Time to slow down, time for reflection, looking back, considering the future.

25 days till Christmas--Reverie

Cabin Reverie--5 by 7 watercolor

Cabins are in my soul, as I have written many times on this blog, and in the holidays their cozy  lure beckons even more.
Their security and refuge symbolize what the holidays once were, before the stress and hustle of commercial life blanketed us like heavy snowfall.
We need that refuge even more.

26 days to Christmas...old paths, memories

Old paths, 5 by 7 watercolor

Barns  speak
of lives before
of earthier times
paths forgotten
Deep inside
until jarred
by something
like a manger.

Rainy day solitude--my cabin

Rainy day solitude, 10 by 12 watercolor, 140 lb. d'Arches--First full size painting in months

Creativity comes
when least expected
Rainy day moods
dreams of mountains
and remote cabins
Forests and quiet
Books and thoughts
Journeys only dreamed
Where next?

27 days till Christmas--beckoning

Beckoning--5 by 7 watercolor

Christmas beckons
like a turquoise door
in an adobe wall.
Year's end
mystery beyond

28 days till Christmas--always a journey

Every year, every day is a journey...5 by 7 watercolor

Numero Cien

Texas Panhandle Christmas ...5 by 7 watercolor

29 days till Christmas

The days grow shorter with the year, 5 by 7 watercolor

Thanksgiving thoughts

Last leaves, first light...Thanksgiving Day

From darkness,
light
From age,
texture
From death,
beauty
From loss,
hope

30 days to Christmas

The Path to Christmas, 5 by 7 watercolor

Peace, please America, but...

Peace, 5 x 7 watercolor

"Blessed are the peacemakers, because they shall be called sons of God."
And where, American, are they?
Hatred and fear, racism and bigotry--epidemic?
Where are the voices for peace? If there are none, forget about a so-called "Christian nation."

A season's stroll for sanity

I took a stroll in the woods this morning, under a gray sky. Hafer Park backs up to our neighborhood and while it's not wilderness, it is labeled an "Urban Forest." The park offers refuge from the constant congestion of the suburban zoo, muting the noise of traffic.
I go there to reconnect with what is important--the miracles of life and death in so many forms, so apparent in this autumn season. 

Fall is late this year, and the leaves are only beginning to change. But if you open your eyes, you see the  small things, the infinite creations that bring sanity to salve the soul, escaping the craziness of this political season.
Breathe deeply, listen carefully, walk slowly, taking it all in.