the Creative Process
![flat lay photography with birds nest pai](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/42e4ba_f90d66d2dffd4f0f972a71e789fa91fa~mv2.jpeg/v1/fill/w_376,h_315,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/flat%20lay%20photography%20with%20birds%20nest%20pai.jpeg)
![17883988526020704.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/42e4ba_3c016b1bd65f49e994bc4183730c28ab~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_499,h_510,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/17883988526020704.jpg)
"Let us come alive to the splendor that is all around us, and see the beauty of ordinary things."
- Thomas Merton
![18196319524002152.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/42e4ba_93e47c59580d48edae2dac80dbe94224~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_349,h_434,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/18196319524002152.jpg)
A painting is created out of more than just canvas and paint.
My paintings tend to come from afternoons spent in my garden, from music that moves my soul, and good books that stir my emotions. They come from heirlooms I hold dear. They come from nature items collected on morning walks. They come from surrounding myself with beautiful things that I love.
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Many of the titles of my painting come from the things I reflected on while painting - a conversation with a friend, the hard times and happy times of life, a Bible scripture or lyrics from a song. All of these affect the composition, the colors, and the very brushstrokes that make up a painting.
![17901352618475934.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/42e4ba_e819ade6da31466e90219d3639e53158~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_393,h_411,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/17901352618475934.jpg)
![85B5ABA9-1054-4A0D-A912-6486E90A6366.jpe](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/42e4ba_08fb8eceb7bd44b5ad8786630069c9d5~mv2.jpeg/v1/fill/w_338,h_451,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/85B5ABA9-1054-4A0D-A912-6486E90A6366.jpeg)