When Life Gives You Lemons . . .

I always intended that the purpose of this blog would be to share with you my adventures along the journey of art quilting.  Lately, though, I've been making more lemonade than anything else, and I wanted to briefly let you know why I haven't been posting or commenting on your blogs as often as I'd like.

This past September, our son, who is a journalist, travelled to South Africa on an assignment; while there, he got into a wrestling match with an all-terrain vehicle, and the ATV came out on top.  Sean ended up with a broken arm, six fractured ribs, a broken wrist, and fluid surrounding his lung.  He IS, however, alive, and we are unspeakably grateful.  He was operated on in South Africa and came back to our home to recuperate; he also needed lung surgery in NYC and seemed to be on the mend.  

They say that, if you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.  It turns out that Sean's arm required MORE surgery this past week, because it hadn't knitted at all.  He's back upstate with us, and this time the recuperation is slow and extremely painful.  We're taking everything one day at a time and hoping he turns a corner soon.

On top of this, we just learned that our beloved dog, Doyle, has lymphoma; it was an especially difficult diagnosis to hear, since he's only seven years old.  We don't know how much longer he'll be with us, so we've decided to celebrate his life each day the best we can.

I feel as though I have a wonderful support group with all of you who read and comment on my blog; it is this sense of community that makes it easier for me to share my thoughts with you when life isn't so gentle.  Your thoughts, prayers, and advice are more than welcome; please know how grateful I am to you for our continued connection.

Diane

"Try to Remember . . ."

“Just A Doodle: #15”  ©2010 Diane Evans

A year ago, Alyson Stanfield offered the following advice on her Art Biz blog; I read it over recently, and it’s every bit as relevant today:

“You’ve been going at it all year.  You do.  You try.  But then, you look back at that task list and become discouraged.  Instead of thinking about what you still want to achieve, focus on acknowledging all you have done.  Take time to write down your accomplishments for the past year.”

She offered a list of questions to jump-start your thinking, such as:

(1) How did you promote your art?

(2) Who were the top ten cool or influential people you met?

(3) What did you try that was uncomfortable, but helped you grow?

(4) How did you improve your studio habits?

(5) What was the single best thing that happened to your art career this past year?

She then advised: “Be grateful for the energy you found, the people you came across, and the experiences you learned from . . . Celebrate!”

I found Alyson’s ideas to be eye-opening (the list of questions for 2010 is posted again here); she motivated me to take inventory of my plus-column for the year, and the exercise was a real boost to my self-esteem – another way of reminding me to view the glass as half full.

So here’s to 2011; may it bring us wonderful accomplishments, continued friendships, and unimagined creative artistry.  And you, dear readers, are the coolest people I’ve been fortunate to meet.

Diane

(Please share your answer to Question #5 -- it'll make us ALL feel good.)