Two weekends ago I was running the half marathon feeling great. And then mile 9 hit and my knee felt like it wanted to explode. That’s when I looked up to see my family– my brother, my sister and her three kids (all under three) had come out in the freezing cold just to wave their hands at me for all of two seconds. It most definitely renewed my spirits.

On day 28 of these 31 days of painting, I feel like I’m done. Like I ran a good race and my knee kind of hurts and can it just be over? That’s when I met seven-year-old Parker at a wedding last night (bottom left in a tux next to a little girl in a pink dress). He stood by my side for most the night with this repeated, enthusiastic comment: “That is the best painting I’ve ever seen.”

Meeting Parker was like a little cheer and wave at the end of a long race. And I’m ready to push to the finish.