Looking back at the last painting that I posted, I can’t help being a little bit sad. Those beautiful dunes at the end of 10th Street have now been washed away by the waves of Hurricane Matthew. At the same time, I am extremely grateful for the damage that we were spared. Things here in the town of Atlantic Beach could have been much, much worse. I am thankful that every morning the sun will rise over the ocean, even if the dunes are not there to greet it. Even if I am not there to see it, the sun always brings with it a brand new day full of new opportunities, and new things to see.
Why I Wake Early
Hello, sun in my face.
Hello, you who made the morning
and spread it over the fields
and into the faces of the tulips
and the nodding morning glories,
and into the windows of, even, the
miserable and the crotchety –
best preacher that ever was,
dear star, that just happens
to be where you are in the universe
to keep us from ever-darkness,
to ease us with warm touching,
to hold us in the great hands of light –
good morning, good morning, good morning.
Watch, now, how I start the day
in happiness, in kindness.
-Mary Oliver
Patsy Cooner Art 