Close to Shore
Close to Shore
Thinking back through life, some of the most memorable moments are not the happiest ones. Grief, sorrow, and loss are a part of life, and we can only hope that brighter days will come soon. This painting reflects upon our ability to cope with that state of human experience.
I recently attended a Seattle Center for the Book Arts workshop with my wife Andree who is a board member, and while there, I met Meredith Clark, a gifted Seattle poet who was offering her poetry writing services on the spot. When I briefly described the main points of this painting, this is the poem she came up with, and it sums up my feelings beautifully:
Dark lake, late light. Please
shut the gate tight behind you. There are always
things that want to work their way in
to these kinds of places where days
close and nights begin. If we float out
far from either shore, there will be stars
to count. The sentinels, we cannot
see them anymore. All around, the dark
paints out the colors that were once
so thick. Remember them, the waters lull
later and later against the hull.
-Meredith Clark
