August 16 – 22, 2016

I see Van Gogh’s Blue Irises In A Vase. Black and white gives you time to take in texture and shape, to see without the chaos of color. A moment to ponder only in light and shadow.

I watched blue Irises bloom in black and white. The vibrant blue blossomed not with color, but with texture and shape as each blossom sought its own form; they each rounded and curled on the leaves that stretched in hard perpendicular lines at angles that made you wonder . . . if the blue of the Irises exploded into existence the very moment that they, the leaves, struck the vase. Did the leaves – in that time, that moment of collision – push hidden yellow from the vase to cast it like sunlight on the wall?

I imagine the yellow lifted through the splash of blue Irises, already as vibrant as waves rising and falling back to the sand, eager to carry the new mix of blue and yellow to the leaves–now green as the light softened their angles to pull the last dark hue into a tinge of earth brown wrapped around a vase – grounded – almost in a monotone hush, to the table where some of the Irises stretched back to remember:  a still life, invisible in black and white.

“You are not invisible” was an idea that came to me as I realized we all feel that way at times, but some people carry that cloak daily; brave people who often walk in only light and shadow–afraid or just uncertain of their own colors.

There is an elegance in the depth, texture, and form of light and shadow;  something exquisite in essence laid bare. A beauty and strength in each of us that, once seen and understood, explodes with color to reveal a masterpiece. It will take a lifetime to paint my friends, but enjoy the times of light and shadow as well as the times of color.

Sudoku puzzle 7 answers