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“You can do it. I know you can,” Opal said as she helped me choose canvas, oils, brushes, brush cleaners and many other tools for the craft. I wasn’t so sure. I could sew, crochet (never liked knitting) and do decoupage, but oil painting was for artists. I never considered myself to be an artist. But I was willing to try almost anything once.
Although our choice of faiths was different, Opal was a Christian and so was I. This was what helped to bond our friendship that lasted many years. We spent many hours together in her studio. These were such wonderful times of enrichment.
After I began painting, I looked at God’s world differently. Opal said I would. “You’ll notice the trees; how the sunlight and shadows change their appearance,” she said.
I did. But I noticed a lot of other things too. I noticed the coloring of the different sunsets and the grayness of an angry day. I reveled in the perfect ness of a rose or the humbleness of a shy pansy. I was enthralled at the beautiful arching and the soft hues of each rainbow I saw; as it reminded me of God’s promise to Noah. Painting opened a whole new world for me.
My gift of painting surprised me. It seemed natural for me to “smear” the oils on canvas. I guess the finished product turned out okay, because I sold one painting to a stranger. (Friends will buy anything.)
Besides fashioning handcrafts, I at one time propagated houseplants. It was amazing to watch as God created new plants out of a simple leaf stuck in potting soil and left to his wiles. But nothing, for me, will ever take the place of painting with oils. Every day, God creates a new canvas for me to enjoy. Sometimes, I put it on my canvas. Other times, I just feast on his handiwork. I bask in the splashes of color that he has created. God is the master craftsman!
Every time I see a newborn baby, a puppy, or a kitten; ever time I see a beautiful sunrise, experience a soft snowfall or gaze on a majestic mountain, I think of these words: “I will praise thee; for I am beautifully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” (Psalms 139:14)
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