No Failures

If you think you have failed, you should realize that there are no failures in this Universe. You can completely erase the idea of failure by stating that there are no failures. If one believes that he failed last year, he will be likely to fail again this year. So we must erase the false thought. The only failure is what you tell yourself. So turn this idea around and know that circumstances are just that, and you can come at the same solution again until you feel you have success. Notice that it is only in your wrong thinking that says "failure," and not an actual fact. When you forgive yourself, you will be able to move on and try again from another angle if this is important to you. So, breathe deeply of the perfection and beauty all around you in nature. Take a walk, talk to the animals, look at the mountains and seas and watch the sunset. And even if you decide not to try again, let it go. How many times do you think an inventor has "failed" until he finds just the right combination of thoughts, ideas, and tools. And then he can say he has succeeded, but was it not the process and not the product that brought him the triumph and joy?

I cannot tell you how many canvases I have stored in my closet that I deem "failures." So, the other day I realized I can dispose of them or sand them down and start again. I don't want them taking up space in my room or in my headspace, so I am going to take them out and burn them or I am going to pull out all the staples and dispose of the canvases and make new paintings using the stretcher bars. I do not want to look at "failure" except that they tell me I have tried and I can try again. Some paintings are a success right away and others, well, they were an exercise. It's going to feel good to throw out everything extra that is taking up space here. Whew! I am glad I made that decision.....NEXT?!

Artimino, Italy

I loved traveling in Europe. I was so inspired during these trips that I felt these beautiful scenes of orchards, gardens, hilltop villages, acres and acres of sunflower fields in July, all were a melody that came right into my heart and stayed forever. I had to paint! And so, Artimino and many others have come into being. Maybe they are more than simply images. Perhaps they can live inside us and make us feel calm, and experience wonder. I wonder how the peasants and farmers who planted these seeds and watched them grow, and finally harvested them were influenced by their relationship with the earth, the land, the sun, the rain, the seasons. It's in you, too. Just close your eyes and picture these fields of flowers and fruits. Run and laugh in the rain, and create a rainbow of memories for yourself and those you love. Better still, go to the fields and work. Plant your own seeds and watch as they grow. Perhaps it will become a metaphor for your life.

Artimino