Wind in My Sails

Detail, from One Word, 18x24, quilted painting

May 16, 2024

One Word

Eight weeks ago, I began Artist INC, a course offered by the Mid-America Arts Alliance to 25 people within a 60 mile radius of Little Rock to get our art practices going—“MAKE ART WORK” is their tagline. On week #2, after talk of branding, grant-writing, social media, --I felt out of my league. I was ready to bail. I felt flat. Adrift on a flat sea.

In 1967 I lived at Point Reyes National Seashore—I’m a National Park Service kid—and I was a sophomore at Tomales High School 17 miles up the coast. A friend with a sailboat sailed it across Tomales Bay early one morning, tied up at a restaurant in Marshall, and hopped on the school bus with us. She invited us to join her for the return trip across the bay after school. Three girls in dresses and one guy got off the bus and onto the boat.  It was GREAT. Wind, sun, perfect, until we got out in the middle of the bay and the WIND STOPPED. No motor. No paddles. Adrift on a flat sea.

As I slunk toward the exit door that 2nd week of Artist INC, recalling that afternoon sail 57 years before, I was stopped by 2 smiling, bright-eyed women whom I did not know. They said they liked the poor photo of an incomplete quilted calligraphic painting I had shown the group the first week and wanted to SEE MORE of my work. It was a 90-second encounter.

As I walked toward my car, I felt wind at my back and sun on my face. Their enthusiastic few words dropped into my heart as ‘encouragement’ and that week, I began a new calligraphic quilted painting.  ONE word can change your life. It did mine.  

This 8-week program winds up next Tuesday night, May 21, 2024. I’m so glad I was invited and I’m so glad I stayed for all 8 weeks and met so many wonderful people, especially those 2 who brought the wind and the sun with them!