"Ozora Sunset, Apple Valley" 8x10x1.5" Oil on Canvas

Times are extra challenging right now.  Amidst all of the chaos in the collective, we may also be going through difficulties in our personal lives.  These situations are having me reflect on the importance of giving ourselves the care and compassion we so need right now.  Self care is a powerful tool, and sometimes we just need to break away from it all to go inward.

One of my favorite acts of self care is to immerse myself into a calming activity.  I like to get out into nature, go on a hike, a bike ride, or visit the ocean.  Then I can be immersed within the places that inspire me.  I notice and meditate on how the sunlight tickles the seed heads of the grasses, making them sparkle while they nod in the breeze.  How the light touches the California hills and turns them to gold. (This is why we are called the Golden State!)  I love to watch how the setting sun completely shifts the colors of the land around me.

 
Color is therapy to me, and nature reminds us to breathe and be still.  This is the space where the profound beauty and awe of nature can be a release and a place to find rejuvenation.  I paint these places in order to capture these feelings and keep them close to home.