Hi, Loves, Happy almost new year. What a long strange trip it's been, eh? I shared a bit about my spontaneous holiday road trip on social media, but it feels worth revisiting... along with a story within the story. I'll start with this: The holiday season can be really tender for me. Not having kids or parents or an obvious place to celebrate is, well…a thing. Add in the dark, wet, cold of the Pacific Northwest at this time of year, and you can see where this story could go.
During the weeks leading up to the holidays, I was feeling pretty untethered and verging on depressed, so I did what I often do in my paintings when I'm feeling stuck: I CHANGED THINGS UP. I had a group of paintings from my residency in Santa Fe I needed to get home, so I booked a one-way flight, rented a minivan, loaded up my paintings, and headed off on a holiday road trip adventure. 💃🏻🎄🏜️
As soon as I stepped foot in Santa Fe and looked up at the bright blue sky, the heaviness I'd been feeling lifted. Just like that. For the next seven days, I met up with dear friends for cozy fires, homemade meals, hikes in red canyons, spontaneous rendevous in random Airbnbs, redwood forest fairies, and a magical Christmas morning with the biggest indoor tree I've ever seen. I also got to hand deliver (aka Art Santa) some of my paintings which sold in my recent online painting sale along the way. This part was so sweet and special. |
