Swing!

Hooray for Spring, it's time to SWING!!! This is my first complete image for the children's book I've been working on. Wow, this has been such a crazy journey. Last night, when I finished this image, I was completely disgusted with it. This morning however, I'm content. Nothing like a night's sleep to make you feel better about your art and life in general. Last night, I was having a bit of an artistic crisis. I thought, I stink, I can't paint anything the way I envision it in my head. I hate the way I work, it feels so dead and boring! This morning I realized, "Wait, I'm only 24 years old. I still have so much to learn!" All I can do is continue to use the gifts God has given me. I want to be better, to learn more and to improve. Life is all about learning new things, as Kelsie is discovering. (This is her first time swinging. She's not so sure about it, but she's giving it a go. All I have to do is stay on that swing and swing a little higher each time, until finally, I jump off the swing and land at heaven's door.) Okay a bit cheesy, but really, I never thought of swinging as a metaphor for life, but it is. Sometimes you're up, sometimes down, sometimes going forward, and sometimes going backward. Swinging was one of my favorite things to do as a kid, and even now, there is nothing quite like it. Very freeing.