Here’s a watercolor and ink I completed for a client today, “Red Sky Birches” (16”x20”).
“Gulls in Rain” (watercolor by nakedpastor, 20”x30”)
The rain does fall. The wind does blow. But at least we’re together. And somehow this makes it not only easier, because it turns it into something that brings joy and makes me stronger. Even wiser.
I’m glad you’re with me. I know I could do it alone. I’ve done it before. I’ll do it again. But you’re with me now, and your presence brings me peace.
We have no idea how long this storm will last. But we’ve got wings and we’ll use it in our favor.
Purchase the original painting (it’s large!), or get a print.
One of the things that religion teaches you is that you must serve others before yourself. You must always put others ahead of yourself. In fact, you should neglect your own needs for the sake of others.
To take care of yourself is a sign of weakness and selfishness. To take time for yourself in order to care for yourself is understood as an unfortunate need for an inconvenient sabbatical that is temporary until you get well enough to serve others again.
Which is odd! Because the people we admire from the bible, like Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Paul, were the most radical, independent and uncooperative people we could ever meet. They had a knack for not keeping followers, and losing popularity seemed to be their greatest skill. Plus, spending long periods of time alone… sometimes insistently… was habitual.
So take some time for yourself! You will feel selfish because you’ve been trained to think that way. So here’s how you do it: allow yourself to feel selfish. Try to see it as an act of strength. Say you’re doing what Jesus would do. Or Paul. Or Moses. Tell yourself that you’re putting the oxygen mask on yourself first in order to be safe and sane enough to help people later and more effectively.
Look at this beautiful scene I painted. The snow, the sky, the trees… one could call them selfish. They aren’t “thinking” of anyone else. But they play a marvellous role in giving us a sense of serenity just by being.
That’s what I did. It works.
Do you like this painting I did called “Serenity”? You can buy a print here.
“You Have to Ask the Question” (watercolor and meditation by nakedpastor)
I’m not saying there is no god.
But you have to enter the dark winter and ask yourself that question.
I’m not saying your holy book is the meaningless chatter of fantasy.
But you have to enter the dark winter and ask yourself that question.
I’m not saying life has no meaning.
But you have to enter the dark winter and ask yourself that question.
I have no idea how long your dark winter will be.
I suppose it depends on your courage
and the sincerity of your question.
I suppose it depends on whether you really want to know
and on your resilience with whatever answer comes.
If one ever does come.
But you have to ask the question.
You have to enter the dark winter.
“Jesus Tempted by the Devil” (ink and watercolor on paper, by David Hayward)
The story of Jesus being tempted by the devil for 40 days and nights in the desert is an incredibly risky story for Christianity.
Why? Because it betrays the sheer humanity of Jesus. In religion, temptation is understood as the inclination to sin… the desire to perform an act that one may regret later. The inclination to sin? The desire to perform a regrettable act? Usually, in religion, the inclination to sin and the battle against desire are enough to get you disciplined or removed.
Have you ever experienced a long desert of temptation? Forty days of intense hand to hand combat with a sinful inclination or a strong desire to commit a regrettable act? Forty days of spiritual warfare without any relief? Pray that this cup does not come your way. It sifts you like wheat. It is brutal and you don’t come out the other end the same. There is something unspeakable about it.
This story of Jesus makes him unflinchingly human. Accessible. Real.
This man walks where there is no path. He leaves no path. But he is assured.
Find your own path. Once you find it you will discover it is nameless because no one else has traveled it before. It is yours and yours alone. Call it what you will.
In fact, once you find your own path, you will realize that there is no path at all. It is simply where you are in a boundless, limitless, eternal freedom. Space and silence, pregnant with the All and loud with the thunder of Mystery.
You may find yourself alone. Some may try to reject you. Others will try to claim you. But to you none of this matters any longer. You are fully embraced in the arms of Compassion.
You will become thankful for your Source. You will be grateful for your Destiny. For you will know that they are one and the same.
You are exactly where you are supposed to be.
Northern Lights Hills (watercolor by David Hayward)
There isn’t just the sun. There are other kinds of lights.
There is also the moon. Then there are the stars.
Then there are lights that are so mysterious they defy description. Like the northern lights. If you’ve never witnessed them, I can only say that they are beyond comprehension. They are magical. They are outside of anything we would expect.
There are also other lights spiritually. The light you fell in love with… the light you carry now in your breast… the light you treasure above all others… please remember that it is not the only one.
There are other kinds of lights.
You, my wind,
move untethered,
softly,
and I, like leaf
in freedom rooted,
flutter in your caress.
We unveil secrets
and at dusk
play unseen.
Brushed by gentle whispers,
sent to rest in autumnal days,
awakened with the sun,
I betray your presence,
and you, my all.
For as earth fondles
kissing sky,
I breathe you
and live.
