The Strong Will Remain

This year.  Ooooo boy. There have been some incredible highs andlows.  I have become fascinated with what it means to be strong. I don't think I'm alone in that fascination, because I've noticed that my biggest sellers are often images of strength.  The phoenix rising from the ashes, square-jawed mermaids with hair flowing in the water or withstanding a furious wind, tough women, wolves, bears, tigers and especially lions.  Lots of lions. Most of these pieces have lasted a day or two in the shop before they sold.  Some were sold while I was still working on them.  Why is that?  Why do these strong images resonate with all kinds of people? Is it because we are strong? Or because we want to be strong? Or both? Maybe we are strong already but need to be reminded.  Maybe we need to surround ourselves with these images so that on those days when we feel weak and wonder how we're going to pay for car repairs or help our child with a learning disability or fight that ongoing battle with weight loss or rejection or abandonment, we can feel inspired. Strengthened. Emboldened. These images send us out into the world in the morning and are there for us when we return at night seeking refuge from the day, battered by life's challenges, ready again to look at that reminder that we ourselves picked out and placed in our own home.  We secretly believe in ourselves enough to feel the connection with the tiger or the phoenix or the lion, but we also know ourselves well enough to understand that we still need their inspiration in these moments.  We understand, but also welcome the reminder that  "The weak fall, but the strong will remain and never go under!"  — Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl

More images of strength from my work.