“What a strange thing it is to wake up to a milk-white overcast June morning!
The sun is hidden by a thick cotton blanket of clouds, and the air is vapor-filled and hazy with a concentration of blooming scent.
The world is somnolent and cool, in a temporary reprieve from the normal heat and radiance.
But the sensation of illusion is strong. Because the sun can break through the clouds at any moment . . .
What a soft thoughtful time.
In this illusory gloom, like a night-blooming flower, let your imagination bloom in a riot of color.”
-Vera Nazarian
Reflections
Some of the things I did this month, and the things that happened, will be hard to forget. Trying new things, change, failure, and rejection are all sometimes things we try to avoid because they can be uncomfortable. Yet all are necessary and an inevitable part of life. It is during these times we must get creative.
Creativity comes in many forms and often spills over when your cup runneth dry elsewhere. Using it gives us energy and ideas. I learned that working together gives us solutions and a quicker resolve, whether it be in art or life.
My friend asked me what my word was for the year a few months ago and I told her it was GRIT. There was an article I read explaining The 5 Characteristics of Gritty People summed up here:
1. Courage. The supremely gritty are not afraid to tank, but rather embrace it as part of a process.
2. Conscientiousness. In the context of conscientious, grit, and success; it is important to commit to go for the gold rather than just show up for practice.
3. Long-term goals and endurance: Following through. Achievement is the product of talent and effort, the latter a function of the intensity, direction, and duration of one’s exertions towards a long-term goal.
4. Resilience: Optimism, confidence, and creativity. The ability of people, communities, and systems to maintain their core purpose and integrity among unforeseen shocks and surprises.
5. Excellence vs. perfectionism. In general, gritty people don’t seek perfection, but instead strive for excellence, ‘seeking, striving, finding, and never yielding’.
“Grit is passion and perseverance for very long term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years and working very hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
-Angela Lee Duckworth
This month I’ve had a lot of energy and have not experienced lupus exhaustion at all. I think this is the first month in nearly two years that I’ve been able to fully function every single day and do everything I needed and wanted to do.
And here I thought June was pretty mean to me before giving it some thought. It was a rough month, but I remembered my word for the year,GRIT. I remembered to be thankful for everything I have including good health, for every chance to make things right, and for every opportunity afforded me.
And finally, I remembered that ‘the sun can break through the clouds at any moment’.
June Rewind
Below are pictures of the artsy things I did in June, in case you missed them.
Roycroft Inn Cocktails and Canvas
City of Night Cellograph Mural
Cellograph mural by Community Canvases/Niagara Falls part done by me for City of Night
Left scene by Vinny Alejandro
Middle Silo Chute by Elyssa Harper
Right side/flowers by Vinny Alejandro/beetle by Elyssa Harper
Mini-Paintings
“The insignficances of daily life are the importances and the tests of eternity, because they prove what really is the spirit that possesses us.”
-Andrew Murray, Humility
Stay Low | Mary Claire | Acrylic on canvas | 6 x 6 x 1.5″ | $55
This painting is now available.
“Great passions may either bring great victories or great sorrows. In both cases, it is always a great privilege to have great passions.”
-Mehmet Murat ildan
Passion | Mary Claire | Acrylic on canvas | 6 x 6 x 1.5″ | part of a collaborative work
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