Skip to main content

Welcome 2011 - Connecting the Dots

I am in my third collage class session and am absolutely thrilled. I am learning, learning, learning. One snag though. It seems like the perfectionist in me is keeping me from creating as freely as I'd like to. The part of me that wants to do my work in an exact manner is hanging me up a bit. So I've been trying to pay more attention to what is inside of me, hoping to hear a whisper from the Holy Spirit. After all, the art is in me and so is He. I try to be aware of the messages that will lead me and memories come to mind of when I was a little girl, collecting and gathering this, that, or the other. I never understood why I was drawn to the things I chose. I just knew that when I liked something, be it a rock, an old screw, or a feather, I added it to my collection. I didn't think about it much, I was just happy with my stuff. Over the years, as I've been drawn to the "this and that", I have added it to my collection of stuff. There was no rhyme or reason to what I collected. Never did I imagine that God would connect the dots as he did. I envision His hand in it like a series of links of a beautiful chain. Somehow, he tied my frivolous, childhood obsession to my collage work today. I find it striking how He can make sense of life's bits and pieces. Psalm 139:14 says, "I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well."  God is good. It has taken a long time for me to see, but over these past few months of working with collage, the Holy Spirit has opened a new place in my heart.  When I am in my class, I feel the peace I felt as a little girl playing outside, collecting "stuff."  I am learning that He is the true master artist working me to become all He has made me to be.


Comments

  1. I'm loving the new looks of your site Re. Your art, as always, is amazing! Really beautiful! I don't think art is supposed to be perfect though. That is what makes it so special and unique. Just like people. Relax and create. Love your work!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What does your "cookbook" look like?

My Betty Crocker cookbook is a wreck. It was given to me as a bridal shower gift in 1979, and I have treasured it ever since. Over forty years later, it remains a prized possession. It has been my cooking guidebook, truly important when you’ve grown up feasting on a mainly southern Italian diet, (no complaints here) which included a lot of pasta and meatballs. Yes, our meals had variety, but gravy was simmering at my house just about every other day. The traditional, and now collectable Betty Crocker cookbook became my best friend in the kitchen. Today, it has all the signs of being used and maybe a little abused. The pages are weathered, written on, and stained. The covers are loose, no longer held in place by the familiar spiral binding. The only thing keeping it together is an oversized, stretchy band. I’ve collected other cookbooks over the years, but this one has been my go-to manual. In it, I discovered new recipes, tried making things I had never heard of, and was thrilled

Baby steps to Big Girl Dreams

My heart was racing.  I had a tug inside of me to make a call to the local community college to inquire about teaching a continuing education class.  I had always had a desire to teach, and the bubbly stir inside of me kept pushing me to act.  My only problem was that  the conversation in my head made me want to run and hide.  But the stir was so very strong.  I had to do something.  And then I remembered a teaching I had just heard by Joyce Meyer.  She spoke about fear and how it can grip your life.   Her solution was simple.  She said, "Whatever you need to do, do it afraid."   A light blub moment !   Her words interrupted that internal conversation, and pushed me to make a choice and shift my thinking.  I marched to the phone....afraid....and made the call to the college.  I asked if they were in need of instructors and before I knew it,  one thing led to another.  By the end of the call, I had an interview lined up and a request to submit a curriculum for a new class

What I learned in March

Another day of snow.  The amount we'd been getting was absurd.  But this one particular day, there was an amazing snowfall.  Even though I really, really wanted to complain, I just couldn't.  It was way to beautiful.  As I drove to work, I looked at the trees along my route.  Each covered perfectly with a velvety ribbon of white.  Just amazing.  How could I possibly complain?  So as I drove, I took it all in.  Any other day, maybe the snow would not have received such a welcome, but this day, it did.  I decided to celebrate instead of complain.  So what happened?  Well, my disposition changed.  Since then, I focused on a simple prayer.  Lord, change me.  Three little words.  Because when it comes down to it, the driver for my mood is my attitude, my perspective, my thinking...all of it.  Learning and saying these three little words was a huge graduation for me.  It gave me a sense of peace and relief.  That is, until I learned a new way to pray just last week.  During a sm