It’s as if a month disappeared out of my life. On 21st August I lost unexpectedly my best childhood friend, Samanta. We were friends since we were 2 years old. So we just celebrated our 50th friendship anniversary. It’s as if I lost my big sister.
Grief is a thing with feathers… Nick Cave has written so much beautiful words on grief in his “Red Hand Files”. They are comforting to read. I have been finding comfort in books, and in drawing.
I like to think of all the joy she brought me. With her I was able to play and be foolish, inadequate, funny, lighthearted. It was fun to laugh about ourselves and all the heavy stuff in life, comfort ourselves and talk seriously, without taking ourselves serious.
We were always looking for beauty everywhere in nature. The big and the small beauty: beautiful trees, beautiful autumn leaves, beautiful branches with lichen, mushrooms….. everything seemed beautiful…. and drawing that. (she also loved to draw and paint).
We were always choosing joy. And to continue that I like to pay attention to the little joys and small beauties of life… That way I still can feel her presence without pain.
How do you handle grief?
And then from 21st to 29th September I went hiking in Scotland with my hubby and another friend. We went hiking and painting in the Highlands and Isle of Skye.
There were amazing landscapes! I will fill a book with them, once I finish my book about Portugal !
Sketching in this overwhelming natural landscape is a unique experience!
Being in nature is so healing!
