Hello Friends,

I started sketching this mama pig and her baby the other day.  The mama pig’s eyes are completely closed, so it may look funny when I finish.  The photo is from a very nice gift my daughter bought for me a couple of months ago.  The gift is a book called “The Wisdom of Moms…Love and Lessons From the Animal Kingdom” by Bridget E. Hamilton.  She thought I would like to draw the animals; they are all beautiful.  My daughter was sad that there were not any turtles in the book, but when I received it from her in the mail while she was gone this summer, I probably don’t have to tell you how much I cried.  Just knowing she thought of me when she found it was a gift in itself.

The quote on the next page for this photo says “Love the moment, and the energy of that moment will spread beyond all boundaries.”  Sister Corita Kent.  This is so true!  Learning to live in the present has always been a challenge for me.  I used to preoccupy my thoughts with things I was dealing with from the past or worrying about the future, but I do very little of that anymore.  The present is beautiful in itself!

At the bottom of the page where this quote is, it says, “Free-range farm pigs will make a nest for their families, gathering straw for warmth when the piglets are young.”  The photo shows them laying in some straw.  This is going to be very challenging to do in pencil!

I love all animals in the book, and I still can’t tell you why when I was a teenager I began to love turtles so much, but as I have said before I love sea turtles now, because they are so beautiful, graceful, and endangered.  For my fourth assignment for my writing class I am working on gathering current information about sea turtles, picking the most endangered type, and writing about conservation.  I think this assignment is going to take a while…just doing the research will take quite a bit of time.

In the meantime, another project I am going to have to start soon is working on a painting of our dog for an auction on eBay to benefit “Forever Foster Homes” and the “Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary.”  Their notice said they are “currently providing lifetime care for over 300 senior dogs.”  My daughter told me about it a while back.  It is not a contest; they are just taking donations of people’s artwork.  The deadline for donations is November 1st!  The auction starts the second week of November.

So as usual I have my work cut out for me.  I also want to write a piece to send into “Chicken Soup for the Soul” which would be my first real writing submission anywhere.  It has to be a true story.  I may have told you all about it already.  There is no deadline for this, though.

However, the institute where I am taking my class is having a poetry contest.  The poem has to be about an animal, but I really don’t write a lot of poetry, so I’m not sure I’m going to have time to submit anything.  Also, the deadline for that is November 5th!  Whew!  Lots of opportunities but I need to choose wisely.

I hope everyone will enjoy your October, the beginning of fall, and Halloween if you celebrate it.  I hope to make a few more posts this month, but my creative life has gotten pretty busy these days!  I am hoping to get the first couple of 5×7 paintings of my sea turtles I did to a printer this month also!

Have a wonderful day, and give someone you love a big hug!  🙂