the magic of ladybugs

  Title: Window of Opportunity. Original Painting (SOLD). Prints are available in my etsy shop.

i took the day yesterday to "look after myself" (as the lovely louise gale so appropriately calls it). i've realized i've felt stretched pretty thin these last few weeks. and with more and more good news going on, it's hard to want to stop. but i needed a day to myself. 

so i took the day to sip tea on the back patio. and a lady bug landed on my cup. it flew to my hand and reminded me of my first week on the job as an editorial assistant at an arts newspaper (my first job out of college). i hated that job, but it taught me a lot. 

during the first week on the job, i remember taking lots and lots of breaks and going outside. i couldn't stand being in an office and sitting all day long. yet everyone else seemed okay with it all. 

Title: Window of Opportunity. Original Painting (SOLD). Prints are available in my etsy shop.

i'd go outside and enjoy the beautiful summer day. and i found this spot out back behind our building where no one ever went. my office was in the warehouse district in downtown minneapolis, so it faced the abandoned train tracks, but i'd found the only spot that allowed for a bit of green grass. and many times a day, i'd take a few moments and sit or walk barefoot in that grass. 

and when i first found this grassy spot, it was flooded with lady bugs! i mean everywhere! it was magical! all of these little orange dots fluttering in the doorways and above the grass. i loved it! it reminded me there is magic in the world. you just need to find your little spot and make it exist for yourself. 

so right now, more than ever, as i'm on this amazing creative journey, i'm reminded that i always knew what i longed for most and where i felt my best. it just took a while for me to admit it, then accept it, and now find it in my every day.

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ps. i've been loving your responses to my ART SAVES story on crescendoh.com! THANK YOU so much for all of your support + incredible kindness!