Hello all,
I'm thinking of taking a small(?) break from the forum. It's been wonderful, soothing and stimulating to interact with you all. I will continue to read posts here although less frequently. In front of me is a long path to improvement and healing, and you have all in some way helped me to find the direction to go.
I will suffer all my life, as Buddha and all of us. We heal, we hurt. We progress, we regress, like lapping waves at the shore.
My paintings/drawings/doodles are taking new, for me uncharted directions and I have discovered artists' paths that will take lots of time and energy to digest. Thank you, Joaquín Sorolla, Egon Schiele, Goya, John Singer Sargent
et al. Art is real work that takes grit, sweat and dogged persistence and it can suck the energy right out of you, but occasionally, just from time to time you get a flicker of
something. Land on the horizon. Imagine being on the
Santa María since August 3, more than seventy days out at sea, beginning to starve and doubting everything, and then (from the ship's log):
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 1492.
He sailed to the west-south-west and they went at the rate of 10 miles per hour and at times 12, and sometimes 7, and during the day and night they made 59 leagues. He told the people 44 leagues and no more. Here the people could no longer suffer the journey. They complained of the long voyage: but the Admiral encouraged them as well as he was able, giving them good hope of the benefits they would receive, and adding that for the rest it was useless to complain since he had come in search of the Indies, and thus he must pursue his journey until he found them, with the aid of our Lord.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1492.
He sailed to the west-south-west. They had a much higher sea than they had had in all the voyage. They saw petrels and a green branch near the ship. Those on the caravel Pinta saw a reed and a stick and they took another small stick formed as it appeared with iron, and a piece of a reed and other grass which grows on land, and a small board. Those on the caravel Niña also saw other indications of land and a little branch full of dog-roses. With these signs every one breathed and rejoiced. They went 27 leagues during this day up to sunset.
After sunset he sailed on his first course to the west. They went 12 miles each hour and up to two hours after midnight they went about 90 miles which are 22 1/2 leagues. And because the caravel Pinta was the best sailor and was going ahead of the Admiral, land was discovered by her people and the signs which the Admiral had ordered were made.
