“Connection” 8×8, oil on canvas
There are things you can’t reach. But
you can reach out to them, and all day long.
The wind, the bird flying away. The idea of God.
And it can keep you as busy as anything else, and happier.
– Mary Oliver in “Where Does the Temple Begin, Where Does it End?”
Poet Mary Oliver taught me to look for the sacred in the natural, to uncover the universe in my own backyard. Her lessons are more often than not lost on me. I am so often looking at clocks instead of trees, websites instead of birds, a screen instead of the sky.
But every once in a while the lesson gets through, and more often than not, art is what causes the breakthrough.
Today’s painting might be my favorite of the 31. I am repeatedly struck by the size of the Bluejays that flit about the oak tree in my backyard. Watching them simultaneously brings me back to myself and out of myself, both grounded and reaching out.
All my paintings from the month will be available February 3 at the gallery and online February 6.
0 Comments

Written by Denise Hopkins
More From The Blog
What is Good.
I will defend my position with the gusto of a hummingbird claiming her spot at a busy feeder: the currently popular sentiment (as evidenced by mugs at every home goods store and tank tops on instagram), “good vibes only” is not only unrealistic but also irresponsible....
Mary Oliver’s “Hurricane”
I had two friends reach out recently about hardships they are facing. The kind of hardships that feel so unfair, so unnecessary. Both times I immediately thought of Mary Oliver’s poem, “Hurricane” which I have taken to reading nearly every morning. I’d love to create...
0 Comments