Do what you need to do♥

I painted yesterday. Nothing amazing, just a small seascape,

but I haven't painted in years. It was a joyful experience!

See, here's the thing~ I have 4 kids, big kids now...

27 (married), 23 (out on her own), 19 (in the US Navy)

and only my baby, 16, remains at home.

Home has been sort of empty. There are ghostly echoes

of laughter and spats, kids romping down the stairs like 

wild ponies. The dinner table broke my heart on a daily basis~

6 chairs with only 2 or 3 filled most days now. I did get smart

and move 2 chairs out. It did my soul good to remove those 

empty chairs. 

Look, I'm grateful and blessed beyond any worldly measure.

My kids are doing well. Healthy birds do indeed leave the nest.

But it has been a rough year in spite of my certainty that things

are as they should be. My 2 oldest fledglings are close by. 

My Navy son is in South Carolina for now. I have seen him once

since Christmas. I miss him so much every day. 

My youngest son, still at home, is the quiet type.

So here is this house, settling down and feeling a bit bereft.

   The upstairs with the neglected gameroom, 2 empty bedrooms...

ghostly, I tell you! 

On Friday I decided to move my studio space from our unused dining room

into my daughter's large, sunny upstairs room. I'd been kicking 

the idea around for a while, but suddenly it was the right time.

And now, I am settled in, perched in this pretty space that has a 

treehouse feel about it. Outside the large window a pistachio tree

nearly brushes the panes. I can see into it's branches 

and I feel so lofty up here!! Morning light spills across

a lace covered table. It is a peaceful room, but bright 

with possibilities! 

So yesterday I painted! I have not painted anything in years. 

In this room I have an area to make jewelry and also

a place to paint and do other projects. I even have space

for my treasured vintage books! 

I needed to do this, to move forward and fill this house

again with sunshine and joy. 

This is my life and it demands I live it well.

For me, this means being grateful and being creative.

It is the way my soul sings.