The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.
    The world and all its people belong to him.
 For he laid the earth’s foundation on the seas
    and built it on the ocean depths.

Psalm 24:1-2

Here is a slight change of direction for today. Art. Monday afternoon I was sitting in the grocery store parking lot, trying to dry out from my mad dash to the car through the rain, when I noticed how cool the world looked from the vantage point of peering through the wet windshield.

So I grabbed an image on my iPhone. That’s what I call really “saturated” color, I thought, or maybe real water-colors! And that reminded me of the wonderful birthday presents I got from our two school-aged grandchildren in Miami. With the children it’s all about color, the more saturated the better.

Beks (7) painted the beach scene on the left. David (9) produced the bold landscape on the right. “At the beach you can see the curve of the earth on the horizon,” Beks said.

Looking at the world through the wet front window of my VW, deliberately not turning on the wipers, reinforced the truth that perspective is everything. Not just “what” we see but “how” we see. And then how we think about what we see, and how we reproduce it if we are any kind of an artist.

I read a lot of definitions of the word “art.” So I assembled this hybrid from several sources. Art is: “The expression or application of creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form, producing works that are appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”

I especially appreciate the reference to “emotional power.”

Here in my study, the raw emotional impact of my grandchildren’s art reminds me of several things:

• David and Beks love me enough to put time and effort and creative imagination into their gifts.
• They see the world in vibrant color.
• They experience each moment with eyes wide open.
• They see more color because in their world there is more color.
• Their parents are teaching them not just to see but to LOOK.
• Life is to be experienced.
• We have no time to waste on anything other than everything.
• When you expect to see and experience wonder, then that is what tends to happen.

And more, always more.

Enjoy today’s splash of color, and these “Live like David and Beks” reminders. Peace and love – DEREK