Wednesday Art Salon - June 17, 2015

"Gazelle at Graduation"  - pen and ink on paper, 9" x 12"

 This was a whirlwind week.  Our youngest graduated from high school on Friday, and on Saturday we piled into our cars and drove south to begin our relocation to Florida.  Many endings, many beginnings.  The question is, how do you navigate major life changes gracefully?

We began by carefully circumnavigating a sudden flurry of large debris on the highway which bounced off of a construction truck and nearly hit the windshield. (no need for caffeine after that incident!)  One of our passengers was an elderly, crotchety dog who was determined to sit in the front seat.  It took several hours, but we finally convinced him lengthy car rides were best handled by sleeping sandwiched between cargo placed around him like a baby gate.

Our arrival was serendipitously timed with a medical emergency and a ride to the hospital in an ambulance, where we settled in for the twilight zone days and nights of hospital routine, hospital food, equipment alarms, wonky IV’s and bare bottoms peeking through hospital gowns.

Now this is before even moving into our new home, which won’t happen until next week.  And so I was not surprised when my sketch pad decided to reveal a young gazelle.

What does message does the gazelle have for me and for our new graduate?  Awareness, speed, agility and the ability to quickly maneuver.  (These skills came in handy on the car ride, for sure! ) Gazelles are quite vulnerable, and must always be aware of their surroundings.  When we face major life changes, we inevitably feel vulnerable as well.   The gazelle shows us how to use our awareness and skill to be comfortable exploring the unknown.  The ability to explore new paths and change direction when necessary keeps the gazelle safe from hungry beasts, and perhaps keeps us safe from stagnation, depression and feeling vulnerable ourselves.

Through gazelle energy we learn action is the essence of living.  The gazelle is the messenger of higher purpose…he knows the way through, and so will we.  Somehow I find this quite reassuring, both as a person embarking on big move and as a mother sending her son out into the wide world.

This piece is sold.