finished!!! We Share One Moon

I'm always searching for the reasons why I paint.  I'm drawn constantly to my studio to draw or paint and create something where there was previously nothing...this draw sometimes gets me a little nutty since I'm a busy mom of three.  I'm balancing the "have tos" with the "i want tos".  You know what I mean...the "have tos" include but are not limited to, laundry, dishes, meals, cleaning. referreeing (spelling?), chaperoning, etc.  I'm discovering that this need to create will only fester and make me frustrated if I don't listen.  It was maybe a whisper for a while but it's heard loudly and very clearly today.  It is part of me.  It's who I am.  I know that I will not create maserpieces on a daily basis but I will create.  I will draw and paint and make things that were previously nothing but bits and pieces or paper or canvas.  I am not in it for the money or the prestige (a little nod of encouragement is always appreciated but not necessary) and I will keep going even if other people question my subject matter or my methods or the amount of time I devote to what they might see as "silly" or "foolish" or even "a waste of time."  I am an artist and I am me.  I am a mother but I have layers like everyone else and I refuse to make apologies for what I am passionate about outside of my family.  I'm devoted to my family and in that is me...aren't we as moms part of that family we're so devoted to and passionate about?  Without taking care of yourself, there is no taking care of anyone else.  You must feed your soul...in doing so, you better yourself for everyone else.  You show your children that you are self confident, you love yourself, you are ok with you.  Maybe that leads to them being ok with themselves, too....we can hope, right? 

So, I paint.  I draw, I dream, I imagine, and I create.  I feel alive when I do and I feel reconnected with the world somehow.  This painting has revealed itself recently in light of Japan's horrible circumstances.  I hope everyone can relate to the "something bigger than us" concept.  Perhaps "she" is Mother Nature, pregnant with new life, preparing to plant new life, holding the moon in her hands.  I initially titled this "She Holds the Moon" but I felt like "We Share One Moon" was more appropriate once I added the star painted like the Japanese flag.  I hope that when you look at this painting, you feel connected to the people of Japan and that you remember we do share one moon.  They are suffering in ways most of us can only imagine.  As humans though, we can empathize with their mourning, worrying, crying, dying, weeping, etc.  We need to keep them close to our hearts and do what we can even in small ways such as praying.  This is what I have done...beyond praying, and I hope it can help somehow.