". . . a brush with nature"

I recently read this quote in an article by Dan McCaw.
“It is really up to each of us which we focus on. Whether positive or negative, thoughts can ultimately become our reality if that is what we constantly focus on. We are who we think and perceive we are.”
These words are true in all aspects of our lives . . . certainly professionally, but perhaps even more importantly, on a personal level, as well.

Two valuable messages to remember here - neither of which are easy to do. Both have the potential to significantly impact your life if you can only convince yourself to embrace them. It isn’t easy. Trust me… it is not. But, if mastered, I believe these changes can be life changing. 

On a personal level, I must remind myself daily to work towards achieving them. I don’t understand why, but it seems easier for negative thinking about myself or my work to creep inside my head than for positive thoughts. And then those thoughts have the audacity to stay longer! It’s seems somehow easier to remain hurt or even “crushed” over a negativity for a long period of time than to remain on the “high” of a positive thought. Have you ever wondered why? I don’t know the answer, but I do know that it is true for me. 

I know that you do begin to believe what you’re told over and over. Examples of that are people who have been held captive for years and come back to the “real world” to say they believe only what their captor told them, not the actual reality of things. Or children that have been told repeatedly that they have no worth. Soon they believe it even though it isn’t true. The same is true for what we tell ourselves, whether negative or positive. And who do we hear more from than ourselves? 

You can certainly begin to understand why telling ourselves positive thoughts is so much more important here than letting negativity begin to seep in. Again, easier said than done, but practice does make perfect and each day of practicing makes it become more natural to you. Soon the practice will pay off and what was once something that had to be thought about and worked towards will actually become a habit for you. A habit of thinking positive.

The second important message in this quote is, “We are who we think and perceive we are.”
Again, SO true, and dovetails perfectly with what we have already been thinking about. Think in positive terms about yourself here and you will be happy and successful in the ways you choose to be. If you “see” yourself as a successful artist, for example, believe in yourself and work toward your goals, you can achieve them. Remember, these are your dreams and ideas of success, not the goals someone else sets for you. Only you choose how you work to achieve the vision you see for yourself. It will not always be simple, easy or without challenges, but it will always be the perception you have of yourself. Tell yourself what you want to do and who you want to be. Speak it over and over, silently to yourself, as well as out loud.
Eventually, you will begin to believe in yourself and become the “you” that you want to be. 

Of late it seems that I have been painting a lot of ravens. They are fascinating to me and they are beautiful, too. Fortunately, ravens frequent the woods surrounding my studio, so I have many opportunities to enjoy them in their natural surroundings. Most of my paintings are portraits of them, depict them in forest settings or are my dreams recreated. But one piece is quite different in both the inspiration and unusual  setting.

The movie, “The Birds”, was on my mind the entire time I worked on this painting. I have always enjoyed Alfred Hitchcock movies and “The Birds” is most certainly one of his best, in my opinion. 

I hope I was able to capture some of the same sense of unease that Hitchcock did in his 1963 classic movie. A touch of film noir, perhaps.