Bloom

Description

This summer was beautiful at the river in Christmas Valley. There were more wildflowers blooming than I’ve ever seen here – Tiger Lilies, Lupins, Mule’s Ear, Creeping Dogsbane, and so many more. The grasses were so green it almost felt unreal. I came out to this spot one morning to take a cooling dip in the water. It’s not quite deep enough to swim in most places unless you find a current to swim against, but there’s enough water to move around in on a hot day.

This particular morning, I felt at a threshold in my life. The river is a place I come to contemplate and recenter myself. I stood in the water at the bend, just looking around me with curiosity and openness. After some time, I allowed myself to fall back into the water. The cold full immersion was a shock to my system, an awakening. It felt like a trust exercise, and it was.

Later in the summer I came back to this place with an easel, paper and pastels. To make a drawing en plein air of this place felt like a completion of the transformation taking place.