Untitled
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20" x 16" / acrylic paint and thread on canvas / 11.00.2010
When I was a young child my Father took me with him on a trip to visit an old friend. Through the back roads and woods of Vermont we bumped along in my Father’s truck. When we arrived at our destination my Father and his friend began their conversation and I wandered off to see what I could see. As I roamed the small farm I discovered a large galvanized bucket with a glorious catfish swimming in circles near a line of fencing on the property. I bent over to investigate the magnificent whiskers of this creature who was rhythmically repeating his route along the round edges seemingly looking for an opening or a way back to the waters from which he came.
As I stood and lifted my head I was, for the first time in my life, nose to nose with a Horse. This was the first time that I had stood so close to one of these noble Beings. In that very moment I became transfixed by the Horse’s Eye. The entire world and its Story existed within the galaxy of his eye. I looked into that world for what seemed like an eternity and I wept at the Mystery that I saw. My father would later find me laying on the ground near the fence and I would still be weeping.
Throughout the remainder of my childhood and adolescence the Story would remain the same. I could not stand in the presence of one of these Creatures without becoming overwhelmed with the mystery and beauty that I felt while in their presence. Years later, when I was in my thirties, I was given the opportunity to come into relationship with one of these Great Beings. The day that I met this Creature I spent hours standing in his presence and learning his Story. As I was preparing to leave the Sky began to change. What had only moments before been a cloudless and bright Sky began to gather into a formation of rain clouds. As the sun streamed down, the Sky opened up and the rains began to fall. A sea of tears from above. The sun continued to shine, the rain continued to fall, and over the small barn stall that we were both standing in, a rainbow crested. The grief and joy that had once existed inside of me released, acknowledged and answered by the Sky.
I am a humbled and honored to be a participant in this Great Mystery of Life.
As I stood and lifted my head I was, for the first time in my life, nose to nose with a Horse. This was the first time that I had stood so close to one of these noble Beings. In that very moment I became transfixed by the Horse’s Eye. The entire world and its Story existed within the galaxy of his eye. I looked into that world for what seemed like an eternity and I wept at the Mystery that I saw. My father would later find me laying on the ground near the fence and I would still be weeping.
Throughout the remainder of my childhood and adolescence the Story would remain the same. I could not stand in the presence of one of these Creatures without becoming overwhelmed with the mystery and beauty that I felt while in their presence. Years later, when I was in my thirties, I was given the opportunity to come into relationship with one of these Great Beings. The day that I met this Creature I spent hours standing in his presence and learning his Story. As I was preparing to leave the Sky began to change. What had only moments before been a cloudless and bright Sky began to gather into a formation of rain clouds. As the sun streamed down, the Sky opened up and the rains began to fall. A sea of tears from above. The sun continued to shine, the rain continued to fall, and over the small barn stall that we were both standing in, a rainbow crested. The grief and joy that had once existed inside of me released, acknowledged and answered by the Sky.
I am a humbled and honored to be a participant in this Great Mystery of Life.