After Life Rips You Open and New Art!

Mountains of shame, second-guessing myself, and the decision to stay honest. And, there's beautiful art, too!

After I published When Life Rips You Open, I felt a tremendous wave of shame, which told me:

I shared too much.

I was too emotional.

I should have kept that private.

I believe that’s my grief talking—and my shame, too. They like to gang up on me, and usually, they win.

But I’m leaving the piece published because it’s real, it’s my life, and grief is too much. It’s messy, emotional, and rarely well-behaved (kind of like me!). And my writing—like my painting—isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being true.

So if you read it and felt the stirring of some of your losses, then my vulnerability did what I hoped it would: connect us.

Thank you for reading, for witnessing, and for reminding me that honesty isn’t “too much.” It’s enough.

And to lighten the mood…

New Art!

Over the last month or so, I have been creating new pieces of art for my two upcoming art shows (Funky Ferndale in Ferndale, Michigan, and St. James Court in Louisville, Kentucky).

The four paintings below are not yet on my website, but they are for sale. Please contact me if you’re interested in giving one or more of them a forever home.

Bursting With Dots and More Bursting With Dots

Happy, chaotic, and just a bit eccentric, both Bursting With Dots paintings happened at the same time and were the product of my letting go and not caring about the outcome. I was in a happy mood while painting, and I think that shows through. I tend to gravitate toward purples in my painting, as that’s the color I chose as the basis for these two.

Bursting With Dots

• 8x8x1.5

• Sides painted sides

• $125 (does not include shipping)

More Bursting With Dots

• 8x8x1.5

• Sides painted

• $125 (does not include shipping)

---

Swallow the Fear and Take the Chance, and Swallow the Fear Again and Take the Chance

I desperately wanted to try something different in these two pieces. Typically, I am very controlled and like things to have a pattern while at the same time conveying chaos, which is how my brain works. With these two pieces, I didn't care about pattern or conforming; I just painted until I smiled widely at the canvas, which meant I was done.

Swallow the Fear and Take the Chance

• 10x10x1.5

• Sides painted purple

• $150 (does not include shipping)

Swallow the Fear Again and Take the Chance

• 10x10x1.5

• Sides painted purple

• $150 (does not include shipping)

---

Thank you for witnessing not only my words but also my art—it means more than you know. Have a fantastic day!

---