Adapting
Flying out of Ottawa yesterday, we looked down on a beautiful snow covered landscape - ribbons of road through a glistening white patchwork. Coming in to D.C., we flew in over affluent winter green suburbs changing to government barrack type neighborhoods. With my head pressed against the window, I thought about how life is a serious of adjustments. Not only in subtle ways like a changing landscape, but also in life altering way — life jarring ways.
Children go to first grade or they graduate from college, we catch colds or family members become seriously ill, job changes or job losses, the list of bumps are endless. We adapt, we resist, we change our perspective, we dig our heels in. We do all of the above, sometimes at the same time!
We all need a constant - something completely within our control that we can immerse ourselves in. It doesn’t have to be important but it needs to be personal - and totally our own. In my case it is creating art but it can be journaling, running, writing poetry, anything really. We need a home base to touch when it feels like our life is swirling or even worse, slinging us around.
As we flew home, I let my mind settle on my studio. Thinking about my current piece and the new tools I purchased last week, looking forward to the next few hours I could spend with color, forms, and hot wax. Changes in life are inevitable and I’m thankful for the peace I receive from making art.
