In August of 2011 my husband and I drove to Sante Fe, NM for the weekend. While it was miserably hot in Texas when we went, the Sante Fe high desert was heavenly! What a great weekend we had!
While I loved all the spectacular beauty we saw in Sante Fe, to my total surprise, it was the art galleries and exhibits in downtown Santa Fe that sent me over the rainbow!
Though I had painted in my twenties, I was 61 in 2011 when we made this trip to Sante Fe and hadn't painted in over 30 years! In fact, I had pretty much forgotten that I had ever painted! And yet, driving back to Texas from Sante Fe, the thought that I am an artist kept going round snd round in my head.
The day after we returned home I went to Hobby Lobby, bought the art supplies I needed, and did my first painting since 1978. The more I painted the more my joy deepened! Since 2012 when I decided I wanted to "go all in" and began to paint daily, I have been positively aglow with happiness and joy!
When my sweet sister recently called me to propose that for my next birthday we fly together to Santa Fe for a weekend, my response to her suggestion totally surprised me: "I am Santa Fe!” which is to say painting daily brings me so much joy and delight, I don't need to go to Santa Fe! So where are we going for my birthday? To the ocean!
Pic of 8’ unstretched canvas inserted in setting.