NEW PAINTINGS

I've really been painting a lot lately, even though we've been so busy with the house. I'm really serious about painting and making it a priority. I'd doing one a week approx. now.
This is one I did on Mother's Day while Al fished with Owen at Marquette Lake at the Gap.
I was going to call it "A Good Fishing Spot" like our friend Bruce suggested, but they didn't catch a thing =)
It sure was a beautiful spot and a glorious day, and I felt so very blessed to be there painting . Plein air painting is wonderful because you're at a place that you love (or you would not choose to paint it), hopefully in nice weather, and usually quiet and secluded, listening to birds and at times the sound of the wind rustling in the tree tops. (Reminds me of the OT when they heard God's presence in the rustling of the trees)
I wasn't planning on mentioning this, but I'm thinking of my friend Sharon who recently asked me to post these pics (sorry I took so long), and remembering an experience we had while we were out painting in Bedford county in the middle of nowhere, on a dirt road overlooking miles & miles of undeveloped land. You couldn't see a person or a car, and we were talking about the Lord as we waited for our under painting to dry, and all of a sudden, on a perfectly still sunny day, out of nowhere we both hear a " scraping" noise (to best describe it), as if someone was dragging lots of metal trashcans along the road. It got louder and louder very quickly and as I spun around to see what was making such a racket, we were both engulfed in a whirlwind so great in force that it took my straw hat which I had tied under my chin, and sent it straight up in the air about 15 feet or maybe even higher, then dropped it a few feet away when it was all over.
We were both speechless, and had goosebumps to say the least. We just both knew and felt God's presence was there, and He wanted to let us know it.
The "wind" was only around us, and never touched my large umbrella attached to my easel, nor Sharon's covering over the top of the van hatch (she had there to keep the sun off her painting), which was maybe only a foot or two away. The slightest wind would have taken that as well as my umbrella, causing my easel to capsize. The wind only engulfed both of us as we stood close together talking and sharing about the goodness of the Lord. I believe He wanted us to know He was there, and even the sound of His coming was awesome, because we could not see the effects of wind, and so we did not know what it was.
Right afterwards Sharon said something like "WOW!! We just had our own Pentecost Day experience!" And I had to agree. I still have that painting which I never finished, to remind me of that awesome time when God showed up in such an amazing way. I don't think we'll ever forget it!
Then I believe it was that very afternoon, we went to another spot to paint, and I stood on the edge of a covered bridge painting, when after an hour or so Sharon came over to see what I was painting. For a lady that I would describe as reserved, she jumped as quickly as she could onto a rail at the edge of the bridge, with her feet up as high as she could get them, all the while saying "WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW......" That was all she could get out (remember that Sharon? =) Then I heard some rustling in the bushes by my feet, and I heard the word "SNAKES" come out of Sharon's mouth. She said there were two snakes sunning themselves around my feet.
I am grateful for God's protection always, for the things I know of, as well as all the rest I do not know of. (which is fine with me =)
We laughed so much that day, and have great memories of that week's painting excursion in Bedford county .
Next week we're planning another painting trip to her cabin again (if my Monday scheduled jury duty does not last long).
Who knows how the Lord may reveal Himself this time! "With God ALL things are possible"!

This painting I did one rainy day in the studio at the MD workshop last month. The strange thing is I really like it because of the painterly style. I was exhausted from the long trip and did it very quickly with not much detail. (Someone had brought in some flowers to paint since it was raining and we could not paint "en plein air")
Maybe I should paint more when I'm really tired =) What do you think?