Come to my window....

       This is my latest piece, Rustic Joy.  I completed it early last evening.  I enjoyed painting it so much, I thought I'd discuss the inspiration behind it.  Yesterday was a busy day, I was up early, around 6 am and by 8, we were outside, working in the garden.  It's supposed to rain all weekend, so we figured it was a good time to get some tomato plants in the ground.  So that's what we did.  We also put a few in for an elderly neighbour who loves her plants, but isn't physically up to the challenge of bending and kneeling.  Oddly enough, apparently I'm not either because boy was I sore afterward!  Note to self, get decent gardening shoes.

​Anyway, there I was, sore back, sore feet, tired, but also just full of life!  Maybe I'm getting old, or maybe I just need to get out more.

​Throughout the day, I painted.  The rain began to fall and I stared out my window, admiring my handiwork (I suppose I better say "our" handiwork, I can't leave Misty or the friend that was working with us out).   As I allowed myself to feel the satisfaction of a job well done and the "good" tired ache of old fashioned hard work, I painted and this is what came out.  I called it Rustic Joy to capture the rustic feel of the window but also to capture the essence behind the piece, the joy of being out in nature, doing the most rustic thing imaginable, having your hands in the Earth and putting plants into the ground that will someday be food, and the satisfaction that comes from looking out the window at what you've just done.

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