Hopeful

 Hopeful

This panel is an image of my original mixed media painting.

Anything that evokes emotions inspires me--the laughter of my grandchildren, scary music, a beautiful sunset, the moon, understanding words. Oftentimes a scene in a movie inspires me.

THE INSPIRATION

This piece was inspired by a scene in a movie depicting a young bride crying over the loss of her husband. In this particular scene, the bride was hugging the blanket of fresh earth that covered her husband's burial site. She was alone in a new country with strangers. With no one to console her, she expressed her anguish in private under the beating of the heartless, cold, pouring rain. 

Suddenly a man appeared circling his hat in his hand. "Excuse me, Ma'am," he gently spoke.

The young bride turned towards the intruder's voice, a man talking through the curtain of rain. The bride, her arms now hugging mud, knitted her brows at the stranger, and silently sobbed while listening to the marriage proposal of this widower who wanted a mother for his daughter.

The proposal was a marriage of convenience without strings. But she could not see the blessing standing before her. All she saw was a stranger, an intruder. All she felt was loneliness, loss, pain. She wanted to see the face of her husband, but all she saw was emptiness. Her pain was too overwhelming. She could not see the answer to her prayer, the miracle standing before her, because "her heart was in the rain."

THE WISDOM

Life offers joy and celebrations. Life offers pain; Life offers hope.

I imagine many of us can put ourselves in the place of the young bride because most of us have experienced loss, pain and anguish of some kind. When we feel hurt or abandoned, sometimes all we see is the betrayal, and all we can feel is pain. The pain and hurt of the experience can be overwhelming and can take us to a dark place, a place where light cannot live. But if we look through the curtain of our emotions and see the beauty of the flowers that surrounds us, or see the caring faces of friends and family who wait to comfort our hearts, we will see Hope.

THE MESSAGE

Although my story and inspiration is somber, the message is one of hope. Regardless of challenges or trying times, we are never alone. There is always someone near who loves and cares. Sometimes we just need to look beyond our hurt and pain, look through the curtain of the rain.

I see HOPE.