Awe and wonder

View from above
Acrylic ink and marker on paper
5.5 x 8.5 inches
Barbara Muir © 2022

Okay here’s my question for you -- how do we get through a pandemic
going into its third year ? Yes -- critical question.  I taught my one night
a week class last night, and this will be the third year I'm teaching online. 

I know one thing that’s helpful in this continuously crazy time is gratitude.
I feel really lucky to be able to teach through Zoom, get to see my students
and talk to them. Right now, aside from my husband, they are the only people
I get to see on a regular basis.

But as a way of staying sane, and hopeful as an artist, I think awe and wonder
are at the top of the list. Yesterday 18 inches of snow fell in Toronto. Our
street is still not ploughed. Walking is heavy going, although many people
have cleared the sidewalks.   In comes wonder to save the day. Children
were playing outside in the snow, and building snow forts.  The sunset tonight was
wondrous indeed.  I have been working on art all day, with nothing finished to show
you.  The sketch is from a photo sent to me by a dear friend who traveled in
Northern Ontario last summer.  I love it when people think of me and send
me photos of landscapes they think I'd enjoy painting. 

A couple of weeks ago I decided that I will paint or draw every day.  I
am incredibly slow when a project matters, so sketching is freedom --
and painting in acrylic ink is a treat. 

Have a staying happy and safe day.