Sometimes a painting comes into creative form
and much later
long after the brushes have been put down
and the oil painted strokes have dried
after it has been layed on the kitchen table to be framed
and made its way onto a gallery wall
I look back at the image
captured before it left the studio
and its truest meaning
is revealed.
So it is
that this morning
in the only corner of my studio
that is still functioning as a working space
I sit down to begin another day
this one set aside to take advantage
of the grey skies and foggy still air
by continuing the obligatory inventory
of every possession and talisman
that our log cabin held for us
and looked again…and anew
at this shirt drifting beside the ocean.
And here’s what I know now to be true.
We have left something in our wake
here on this planet.
Herself and myself
have been
and are
loved.
To be reminded of that
in our dotage
has been a gift.
From all of the corners we have walked
from way back in time
and as recently as the wee hours of this deep morning
you dear people have reached out
to lift us up.
We sensed
and now can see
who amongst us
will and have most literally
handed us
the shirts off of their backs.
Every single word of kindness
gesture of support
offer to help
has made a difference
to us and for us.
Over the progression of time
the many paintings I’ve done
of this horizon
now feel like both harbingers
and sign posts
left along our road
this one will serve
to remind us
of you.
With our deepest gratitude
We thank you.
And I’ll leave you with the gift of this haiku
from the 17th century Japanese poet Masahide
that was sent to me this morning from D.
since my house
burned down, I now own
a better view
of the rising moon
