I just received a book in the mail with the sweetest dedication. And I had to respond. How could I not?

Was it how many years ago now? Martin Stellar started a master mind group for artists. To sell art. I joined at the last minute. But then when I nervously went online for the first meeting, there were three of us: Martin, me, and… Paula.

Goodness. Could we have felt more different, Paula and I? She was a go getter: producing – and selling – a lot of art, taking it to art fairs and going to Comic Con conferences, meeting movie stars. I was up at my lonely lake house, using this long, slow process to make hand-dyed silk pieces. I was not promoting it at all.

Within the first month, I had agreed to a 30 foot wall hanging piece for a show in a gallery in Washington, DC.

And the group that started with Paula and I expanded gradually all that year and into the next. My show went well. The group lasted 2 years and produced long lasting relationships. But the one that stood out for me was Paula.

What was it about her? What IS it about her?

I don’t know of anyone that has affected me in the way she has. It’s not just the generosity of time. It’s not just her talents and wisdom.

It’s what matters more than all of that. It’s this heart that is open. And connects, somehow, right to where I am.

I’m dealing with a health challenge. One that has taken time and energy. I’ve been missing my art. That focus. And that channel that is our favorite: how deeply art and life feed each other.

But see? Thanks to Paula, I’ve blogged today. And doodled. And looking forward to more. More. More.

What love inspires.

Thank you, Paula.