Februum: Remembrances and Celebrations

Februum. Remembrances and Celebrations. Pen and ink on 11"x14" Bristol Board

Goodbye my dearest, beloved sisterfriend 
Arija Pilskalns Schwerdtfeger

Thank you.

Instagram - Gallery - Behance -  Google + - Society 6

The Elephant Forest

Pachyderm Forest. Archival pen and ink on 9"x12" Bristol Board.

On the left, is the Pachyderm Parade drawing I did for Bella more than two years ago. My dearest friend loves elephants. I have come to regard it as her symbol. When I draw elephants, I associate it with tenderness, loyalty, strength and wisdom. I am grateful that she sent them my way so they can play in my forests. Thank you for sharing your elephants, Bella. Tsup!

Do you know who else loves elephants and elephant trees?

Arija said... If there is on thing in this life that I love, it is your elephant trees. How can I possibly have previously existed when I knew them not? It is a puzzlement.

My dearest Arija... Here is an entire forest of elephants for you! Sorry, it took so long. I wanted to surprise you when you woke up this morning but when I press the "publish" button, I believe it will be past 3:57 PM your time. Your today, is my tomorrow, but for now, this is my present for you.

Tsup!

Surrender To Nature - Arija's Sacred Canyon

Arija in Her Sacred Canyon. Archival ink on 9"x12" Arches Watercolor paper. Double Click to enlarge

For years now I have been wanting to draw my beloved friend, Arija. She is an extraordinary woman; beautiful, learned, wise, kind, caring, an avid and peripatetic photographer, aesthetic... are not enough to describe her.

I feel her vibes across time and space. She is a healer, her words soothe an aching heart and energize a weak resolve. I can go on and on but I will just summarize it with how I feel about her: I love Arija.

She reminds me of my sisters and my mother. I think that's the highest compliment I can ever give a friend, if you know my sisters and mother. I have a close-knit family but I consider Arija a sister, my friend, a true sisterfriend.

I could not make up my mind with how to draw her. This past week, I have been drawing trees. I wanted some inspiration and so I went to Arija's blog and found this and this. I almost flipped. I missed these posts, how???

Please visit Arija's blog. You will know what I mean when I say that sometimes we must surrender to nature and let it infuse us with valuable lessons. Beauty is only one of them.

When I see a rose, especially a pink rose, I see Arija, but I don't know how to draw roses. I sort of hid her behind the tree in this sacred canyon. I can only draw trees. I must learn to draw roses...


P.S. Thank you for all your prayers and well wishes for my Father-in-law. He is still in ICU.

Inspired by and surrendering to overwhelming sacred places: South Dakota's Cathedral Spires, North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains, Mauldin Tree Farm, Rocky Mountain Aspen Groves, South Dakota's Black Mountains and Wildlife Loop, England's Dell (Click on images to enlarge view)

Happy Birthday Beloved Arija!!!

Written September 24, 2010
I was taking a beauty rest and then my mobile phone chimed. It was Arija, leaving a comment and telling me that she was on her way to the Farmer's Market (in Australia) for her birthday breakfast. I know her birthday is tomorrow but then I realized that today in Australia is already my tomorrow so I hurried up and got together my Birthday Greeting Crew (Elie, The Elephant, Piggy, The Pig and Beauregard, The Mouse). Oh goodness! I have never squiggled so fast so I can send this birthday greeting on time for Arija. So here it is my beloved sisterfriend, it arrives today on your birthday the day before it becomes today here, so I will pre-date this post so it will look like I sent it on the right day which is actually the day before the real date here and tomorrow, the date will be right but it will be your yesterday...I think, I have successfully managed to confuse myself!

Update: September25, 2010
Okay, okay! So that was confusing. Explanation: Yesterday in Australia was Arija's birthday which is today in Texas. So in essence, Arija's birthday was yesterday when you consider geography, but if you refer to calendar dates, it is today. So Arija celebrated her birthday yesterday and hopefully will continue to do so by celebrating it today. Simple!!! Don't you get it? See, I understand these things because when I first came to the US, I left the Philippines on my 24th birthday and 24 hours later, it was still my birthday in the US! I celebrated it with my twin Gemini sister who only had one birthday cake, unlike me who had two birthday cakes...

Since it is Arija's birthday, I will spread her love and give this coveted award. You may read about the award here.

Shirley Ng Benitez
Julia Christie
Steveroni
Andrew Finnie
Amalia
Lakhsmita Indira
Audrey
Linda Cardina
Jan
Janice
Silke
Tammie Lee
K.H. Whitaker
Martinealison
Jack Foster

My dearest darling sisterfriend Arija,
my Pink Rose;
my beloved sisterfriend;
the giving one;
the one with beautiful seeing eyes;
the one with the healing hands
and green thumbs;
the one with comforting words;
the one with a soothing soul,

Happy Birthday my Beloved Sisterfriend, Arija!

I love you!

Tears are a wonderful release of an overburdened soul...

My beloved Arija, draped in natural fabric art created by her daughter, the fabulous India Flint. Arija's blog says she is 1996 years old, so I tried to capture her in what I think she might have looked at 500. Levity aside, she is ancient in wisdom, yet youthful and not aging in her vision. Her beautiful eyes, not mere receptors of things that surround her but a teaching method for those of us who forget to stop, look and listen.


I asked Arija what color are her eyes and she replied "When I am happy and well they are green, sometimes they look black and when I am truly unwell they are a grey-green flecked with pale brown." I would love to gaze into those eyes of hers and say "Hello there, you are my beloved friend who dwells in my heart and I thank you so much for everything you have done for me and what you mean to me."


The almost monochromatic illustration above was actually done with sixteen different colored pencil hues, India ink, graphite pencil and pigment ink. Doesn't that confirm that the most meaningful and worthy entity may appear unassuming but may actually be comprised of multiple layers as opposed to something flashy, flamboyant and comprised of merely few layers and when stripped leaves you with nothing.

That I draped her with India's artistic natural fabric creation, is because Arija has been through so many droughts, fire that ravaged everything her family owned after being displaced by war and rebuilding, of illnesses and most recently a brush with death... Life is not fair, isn't it? Yet Arija is full of celebration for its goodness and not once did I ever hear her hum the victim's melody.

Ah she cries most certainly and says...

"Tears are a wonderful release of an overburdened soul, be it from pain, from sorrow or joy or the exquisite tightness around the heart for that which moves us deeply: light, beauty, character in an old experienced face, a simple blade of grass in the wind... the world is so full of beauty, my eyes keep filling with sheer joy when I look around."


One day I wrote something in my blog that was truly personal. I tried to be obscure as I can be but that did not escape two special people's discerning minds. I am sure others intuit my messages but that time, only two felt it in their hearts. Don't let anybody tell me that my blog friends are all in my mind. It is not true. They are in my heart and I shall carry them with me.

Of this series, I have a few more illustrations. I am excited to share with you an illustration of my wonderful younger sister and ooooh! I am drawing Vanessa. Of course I tried to draw my mother and I failed miserably. I ran out of 9"x12" Bristol boards and need to order more.


I wish everyone a wonderful holiday weekend. I am not ignoring your comments. Thank you very much. I will stop by when you are not looking. Please remember the soldiers who sacrificed their lives and those who are still in harm's way so that we may be free.

My Dearest Darling Sisterfriend Arija Is in The Hospital

I designed the Arija Award in honor of this great and wonderful woman, Arija. It is one of the Four Oaks of The Blog World awards.



My dearest darling sisterfriend Arija,
my Pink Rose;
my beloved sisterfriend;
the giving one;
the one with beautiful seeing eyes;
the one with the healing hands
and green thumbs;
the one with comforting words;
the one with a soothing soul,
is in the hospital.
Please pray that she may get well soon
and join us again.

Arija's photograph of one of the hundreds of flowers she grows.

The Secret Society Of Oaks - The Arija Award

The Arija Award

"Ancient as time, favourite tree: the oak, animal: the wolf, flower: Anemone hepatica, place: a forest near water. Bird: too numerous to name,camera permanently grafted to hand, lover of light, nature, the sea, mountains, deserts,all forests, musing on the essence of being, loving all things great and small, caring for this wonderful planet of ours. "arija

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A wise and and much beloved woman taught me something indirectly through her actions. Having grown up in a country ravaged by wars, governed by a dictator who later fled in the cover of darkness, of thieving and corrupt politicians; a place hammered by typhoons, washed up by floods and battered by droughts, there were times when we had nothing but just enough to quiet our borborygmi. Yet the wise and much beloved woman told us to share what very little we had with those who had none. Whoever came to our home to ask for something never left empty handed. She made me believe that by sharing the very little of what's left, it will multiply. Try telling that to a six year old, it will pass over her head like a flying omega.

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It was not until years later when I realized what she meant and see for myself the product of her philosophical multiplication function.

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My Mother was also the first woman I knew who practiced conservation without the bleeding heart-liberal mumbo-jumbo that I now hear with the present green movement whose leaders preach and chastise our lives while they jet off to lunch and highly paid lectures, or power their mansions with air-conditioning enough to cool a hospital building and then invest in companies to advance their financial portfolio rather than truly preserving Earth. She lived a life of great sense and meaning and never once did I ever hear her lecture, proclaimed herself holier-than-thou. She taught by example and made the preservation of our environment a basic function much like eating or bathing.

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I did not think I will ever find another woman like my mother until I met Arija. They went through wars, natural and man-made disasters yet arose from the ashes and remnants with great dignity and honor. They share a progressive view anchored in timeless wisdom, both of great intellect and compassion.

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I am blessed to call Arija my sisterfriend and it is my great honor to design this award to recognize her: A thinking, seeing, feeling, loving person who celebrates life every day. She is an artist, a photographer, a fascinating woman with great sense of humor, wise and thoughtful blogger and a loving and caring friend.

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Bella Sinclair had this to say about Arija: "I was reading just a little bit about oaks yesterday. Such a strong wood that it is prized for its strength and density. It refused to be felled for centuries (until the invention of iron tools). That, truly, is Arija, she who offers support and shade, who twinkles in the sunshine and sways with the breeze, and who refuses to be felled."

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I am delighted to share this award with my favorite bloggers:

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Vanessa

Renee

Baino

BT

Manon Doyle

Valerie Walsh

Diana Evans

Marie S
Allegra Smith
Silke
Caroline
Anne Huskey-Lockard
Tessa
Bimbimbie

Linda Cardina
Lisa Holtzman
Bella Sinclair
Deborah

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my dearest Arija
.and most especially to India Flint