Thus has been the gift of painting
Which has stopped me short in my tracks time and again
To caress the Universe with my eyes
Before I apply paint to brushes
To travel slowly with my gaze
Over the form of the subject
And I am surprised by what I hadn't seen 
Eventho I had looked at something
A gazillion times times in passing

The nuances and complexities
The intricacies and hidden secrets
All slowly unveiling
As I allow myself 
To drop everything else
To be held ransom for a while
To ponder the realm of beauteous reality
That had not been accessible
When I had just rushed by

Sometimes I end up with my soul aching
Wondering why I had missed so much 
Hurrying about dealing with cares of the world
Now will I ever have enough time  to catch up ....
To rehydrate and renourish my soul again

Not that what I was busy with before
Looking after family and whatnot
Was not important
For all those past experiences
Only make me soak up the new with more gusto...

As I share my paintings with you
Which by the way, I so appreciate when you take time to look
I hope you too catch a glimpse of the world I am in
That you be transported 
Even if it's just for a moment 
From the hub-bub of your day

To a moment of serendipity
A moment of glee and wonder
A moment in the NOW and therefore a reconnection with your own beautiful soul

I would like to think our walk through life in 2014
Be like a walk through a Garden
Filled with glorious flowers and never ending wonders

We may accidentally step on a flower
It rewards us with its fragrance
Such is life when we step into difficult situations
They reward us with priceless lessons
One can't learn in any other way
So let us embrace them armed with that electrifying smile of ours ;)

May your 2014 be filled with many, many special little memorable moments
For these little special moments strewned about in one's busy day
Can add  up to making a heck of a year!!

The other thing I wish for you dear friends, is robust vitality of health
For we need a sturdy vehicle with which to experience these special memorable moments

This vehicle can be a bicycle or a Rolls Royce
But if it is an unmaintained, beaten-down pice of...er..have to watch my language here..shi../ cra..
We're not gonna go anywhere...lol

THANK YOU FOR BLESSING ME WITH YOUR INPUT IN MY ART ADVENTURES AND WITH YOUR FRIENDSHIP, dear friends!!  XOXO

Was that a whisper of the wind
Or was that a brush of your gentle hand upon my shoulder
To remind me that you are here with me tonight

The image of your face is slowly fading
As I had wilfully blocked you out
For your image just brought me too many tears

But now I am scared you're too diminished 
And I don't want your light  extinguished forever
From within the depths of my inner being

But know I love you forever, Dad 

When I sat beside your bed
You seemed unconscious and unresponding
I held your arm and I kissed your hand
I so selfishly wanted you to stay and be with us

You reached out and stroked my hair
That's when I knew you love me
But was too tired to even utter the words
So, I had to reassure you that you could let go
If that was what you needed to do
And now, I feel bad that I had told you so
Before Mom was ready ..she said I should't have ...

Tell me you're ok where u are and it's where you want to be 
That's the only way I am going to feel better....

I so wish to swing by heaven's door
To catch another glimpse of you......