LEARNING TO SEE

LET ME TELL YOU…

I think you will agree that we have never experienced a year like the last one and there is no guarantee that the present year will be without problems. We have lived with uncertainty of life and know that it can change in an instant. We cannot see the future and our mettle will be tested in this new year. We can hold the news of the world in the palm of our hand. We can go to the moon, and our elected leaders cannot seem to manage our government in a peaceful, efficient way. We deserve better. With that said, I plan to make the most of my moments, keep my vision sharp to all the beautiful and good moments. I hope the task will become easier for all people.

I have been a painter for over fifty years and a writer for twenty. People tell me I write like a visual artist that I am, and that I describe things so vividly the readers feel they are sharing the experience with me. This pleases me no end. It tells me they have learned to see and observe the boundless mysteries of life and nature with all their senses, not their eyes alone.

I like to awaken before sunrise. At this moment, the eastern sky is opening a curtain and the credits are beginning to role. All is quiet, the sky a perfectly smooth canvas of the palest blue gray. At the horizon, a slash of peach color enters the left frame of my visual field and is quickly merged with splashes of pink and pale lavender, spreading out like a giant opening fan. Horizontal splotches of color are interrupted by miniature clouds of a darker gray, moving at an almost undiscernible pace, making me guess at the track they will take. Some merge into a larger form, only a few pull away to form their own composition. The colors grow brighter and more brilliant, creating a panoramic background for foreground trees. A gray squirrel cautiously leaves its nocturnal nest and creeps along a nearby leafy branch, its head leading the way to an early breakfast of acorns.

Slivers of yellow gold edge the clouds as they continue to fan out against the greenish blue at the horizon. The squirrel, his tail in silhouette, dances against a brilliant, orange tinted cloud, performing a dominant role in the early morning drama. The sky evolves to a lovely cerulean blue, making the purple shadowed clouds seem more brightly lit. Tiny birds rush across the distant sky as if anxious to begin their day. I wonder where they are going in such a hurry. Colors slowly fade as I sit and wait for the second act to begin. Everything is still not a leaf stirring. Yes, nature is at times subtle. One needs to observe carefully, not to miss the anticipated punch line. Like the clouds, squirrels, and birds, we all have our daily rituals. We work, we wait, we sleep, and then start all over again.

We never know for sure how one day or one lifetime will play out, or predict what will happen to change everything as we have learned. Even so, we must be optimistic, our eyes open to better see the featured attractions of life. As an artist, I wonder what life would be like without color. Would a black and white sunrise get our attention? I wonder.

I wish for all my followers a new year of beauty and awe-inspiring color, a return to more smiles than worry frowns and, most of all, hope for a better and more creative tomorrow.

P.S. I hope you are enjoying a copy of my latest book, OUTTA MY MIND AND INTO YOUR HEART.

I’ve had to take a break from blogging, but I’m back and planning to post some excerpts from my latest book for your pleasure.