Dear Friends,
I hope you’ve had a good start to the new year! It has been cold here in Virginia, but it is very beautiful! Though I don’t tolerate cold, windy days well, we keep getting out for drives in this beautiful area! I can’t complain when I enjoy the beauty this much!
As those of you who have watched my skills develop, you have heard me mention wanting to paint sycamore trees. I love these giants that line much of the Shenandoah river and area creeks. In winter they stand out from all the other bare trees because of their white bark. I have had trouble figuring out how to paint white bark in watercolor. So, when I saw the demo of these birch tree trunks, I was excited to try it. I first painted it in a small 5×7 inches format. I loved the painting so much, I decided to paint it again in 8X10 size. They were much easier to paint than I had even hoped for. I will soon tackle a sycamore tree or group of them along a riverbank.
The painting of the two European Bee Eaters was to get back to practice the style of my teacher, Anna Mason. While learning new skills with wet-on-wet and landscapes, I didn’t want to lose that realistic touch. Painting in this realistic style is slow, shade by shade, layer on layer. It was so fulfilling to see these gloriously colored birds come to life! I learned they can be seen from south and central Europe to tropical Africa. They are migratory, gregarious birds that settle in colonies on sandy banks. They are monogamous. They catch stinging insects in flight and remove the stinger by hitting them on a hard surface before eating them. Wouldn’t it be lovely to see a colony of these birds on a sandy bank? So much color and arial dancing as they catch bees in the air!
Then, wouldn’t it be great if we were known as a vibrant community that takes the sting out of what might hurt others. How good are we at accepting those with a past different from our own? Or how do we treat one who admits a habit they are having a hard time breaking? We are so thankful for the nonjudgmental, prayerful, fun group of believers in our Connect Group at church. I hope God has you surrounded by that type of ‘family’. If not, I pray He helps you find at least a few people you can trust to share your life with. We are not meant to do life alone.
May the Lord bless and keep you!
Diane