Day 7. Love Letters.

“Led by Love” 8×8 oil on canvas

Writer Elizabeth Gilbert has a spiritual practice called “two-way” prayer where she writes a letter to God which she often just calls Love and then writes a letter back to herself from Love. 

I tried this practice months ago and it was so good, so healing that I promptly dropped the habit after just a few sessions. It is always surprising to me how hard it is to keep good habits, how easy destructive ones seem to be. But this January, I have gone back to it, and already I am learning much about myself. I hear Love’s voice when I’m driving my car alone, which is usually when all my worries tend to gather and gang up on me. I hear it on long walks. I hear it when I’m watching TV on the sofa or squeezing my paint on the palette. I hear it because I’m slowly recognizing it. And realizing that it was never not there. 

Day 7 is called “Led by Love” and born of these letters. The painting did not start very beautifully. The woman’s skin was blue, purple and very ghostlike. But with time and a dash of patience, she eventually got somewhere. And isn’t that all we can really ask for?

** I’m doing something a little different this year. I’ll post each painting at (or close to) 10 am each day this month and they will be available for purchase on my site. However, the pieces will not be shipped out or available for pick up until February 26, after the run of the gallery show.

Picture of Denise Hopkins

Denise Hopkins

January 7, 2024

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