Wednesday, November 16, 2011

There's a bit of Tigger... in Autumn!... or The Power of Pooh!!!

"Lest we forget"... Another kind of Remembrance Day! Dalston PS - Oil on panel 10x12 inches



BOUNCE!..... BOUNCE!... BOUNCE! Not a bad thing either... the weather and Tigger... "bouncy"... every which way! One day almost winter... the very next Indian Summer as we Canadians refer to that last shine of autumn. Allison... Andrew and "I" revelled nightly in our erratic DVD romps through The Hundred Acre Wood. The pure joy of childhood propelled our every step... and I am not at all ashamed to reveal... that I was as giddy and joyful as they in those early adventures together! I miss those days, especially when the darkness and reduced daylight reduced playtime outside and we would curl up all three...for a "Snuggle" (as Allison referred to the activity) to share"The Blustery Day"... every day throughout that dreary part of autumn.


But Time pushes we humans along... and children find new friends and adventures... as they should and those of us who are "growed up" must either face the Darkness alone... or dig deeply into our pockets... find that Inner Child... and skip out into the world to find our own play. My way to... "slip the surly bonds of earth" (and it works every time for me)... is to grab my paint box... easel and a panel and simply get... "out there"!!! There is not an excuse I can make that is valid... it's a must situation!


I worked hard yesterday morning preparing a rather lengthy and tedious proposal to a gallery for an opportunity to create a solo exhibition based around my 6x12 foot quadriptych. The sunny and unusually warm weather outside caused my attention to "BOUNCE" out the window... so much so that I hurried up the photo part of the submission... and gleefully mailed off the package by two thirty in the afternoon... just when the shadows and light would be perfect for the site I had chosen a day earlier! (I watch the weather!)


Within a five minute hop in the van, I was set up and ready to paint alongside the highway... but down in some scrub grass which afforded an interesting new view of a subject I have passed by a gazillion times and said, "That would make a nice painting!" The light and shadows were perfect... not advanced enough as to let me play catch up... so that when the ideal time was reached... I would be in step with those speedsters.


How strange... when locked into that Flow... that nothing around seems to have influence. All that "Is"... is the painting! How strange as well... that when the light begins to fail... quickly as it does at 4:00 pm these days... that the light on the panel seemingly... remains on! I managed to work out the paint into a reasonable facsimile of the final lighting and was content to call it a day... mainly because I had skipped lunch to get out painting! This ol' Bear needed a "little something"... and to get home to his "Honey"! HA HA!!


Well... all of this silly banter is simply my way of offering.... when November, or "the blues" come your way... dig deeply into your pocket... and let your "Child" out to play. I've yet to meet a child on my journey... who doesn't enjoy a "BOUNCE"... in the woods. Take along your paint box... and see what happens. Always... for "Me"... "it leadeth me beside still waters... and restores my soul." The jpeg is the resulting effort... with only a few quick licks added after supper. My new upbeat feeling... is medication enough to lift "Me" out of the grasp of my earlier greyness. That honey of a sunny day was not wasted!


Good Painting ... to ALL!!!


PS While painting this picture, so many thoughts kept running through my mind about the people and events that took place within the walls of Dalston Public School... and were now either hidden or lost. When I got home... and after supper... the thoughts continued to take up my thoughts... and so before retiring,I penned this wee "word thought" to record some of those feelings. I thought that you might enjoy them as well.



How...Where... When... and Why?


How many feet rushed to answer its bell?

How many stories could this empty classroom tell?


Where went those small voices filled with optimism and cheer?

Where did their knowledge and Life take them from here?


When did the village children cease to pass through its door?

And when... will they recall those cherished hours from Before?


Why ponder the Past and its long bygone ways?

Why?... because they form the basis... for all our Todays!

18 comments:

  1. Oh Bruce, what a fun post : ) I love the spirit. I can tell you were in a great mood. Very nice piece! Yes, when you're in the zone you can loose all track of time. Happy painting to you too!
    p.s. I love your quadriptych. Good luck with that!

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  2. Great post Bruce! I bounced and kicked through the leaves on the way to the gallery today.... it felt really good!

    I love the energy in the strokes of this happy painting. Were you singing whilst you painted? I don't know why but it feels like you were. Have a great day.

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  3. Bruce, could always count on you for a treat of a post. Wonderful painting, great colors and your words once again inspire all of us to put on a happy face and PAINT!! I THANK YOU KIND SIR.

    All the best to you,
    Joan

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  4. Thanks, Bruce, for a bit of fun fun fun fun fun. You really are the only one! :D

    All the best,
    Keith

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  5. Hi Kim!... I'm so very to have you drop by... and to discover that you enjoyed the post... and had fun seeing the painting... and reading the post contents! That's a HUGE compliment Kim!

    Having fun is what painting has always been about for "Me" throughout my lifetime. I have been fortunate to have shared my journey with so many kindred spirits who think and feel like I do about making and sharing art. At this point in my life... I have NO time for negative spirits... and whiners!LIfe is a gift... and what you choose to make it!

    It has never really ever been about $$$... though from time to time my "art mine" has yielded fair amounts of that "ore" as well. But is has always been more about finding new knowledge... sharing it with others... learning more about my Self... and in being (mostly) outdoors in the process.

    There is a sense of joy... freedom and "connectedness" to Creation in all of my work... I think... simply because... I only paint what I feel from my heart! Thank you for noticing that!

    Hi to Harry and the Grimsby Gang!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  6. Thanks Lisa... For visiting...and for sharing your own BOUNCE... through the leaves! It's so easy to put a BOUNCE in your step... and to step gleefully into life isn't it?

    Your willingness to "BOUNCE"... does not come as a surprise to me at all! Your sense of BOUNCE... always in your wonderful site invites "Me" to return... and join into your conversations!

    BOUNCING requires a energy... but it also creates more at the same time... hence the happy feeling ans sense of song that you noticed in my painting! My heart was ceratinly ....singing! And these words followed:

    How...Where...When and Why?

    How many young feet ran and answered its bell?
    How many stories could those empty classrooms tell?

    Where did those small voices filled with optimism and cheer?
    Where did their knowledge lead them from here?

    When did village children cease to pass through its doors?
    And when... will we remember those special years from before?

    Why pause to ponder the Past and its ways?
    Why?... because they form the basis of all our Todays!

    Thanks for your comments and sharing Lisa! The poem's a "song"... back to "You"

    Good Painting!... and BOUNCING!!! HA HA!!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  7. HI there Joan!... Thanks for your kind words... enthusiasm and upbeat... BOUNCY outlook! I can ALWAYS count on "You" to support... and add positive ideas and feelings to this forum for sharing!

    We're kindred spirits for sure!... joined at the hip through painting! HA HA!!

    Love your experimental watercolour and gesso pieces Joan! Lots of room to expand that idea!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest bouncy regards back to "You",
    Bruce

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  8. Hi there Keith!... "Fun fun fun fun fun!" That sure has a BOUNCY feel to it for sure... and our conversations never fail to leave "Me" with that extra SPRING in my step... and BOUNCE in my heart!

    Being together... no matter the distance... ALWAYS brings us together... as "One"!

    Thanks for your visit... kind words and Friendship Keith!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  9. What a joyful post, Bruce! I have Tigger's voice and laugh bouncing through my head, visions of "haycorn pie" and pots o' honey, big furry Pooh butts sticking out of too small holes. It might come as no surprise to you that I always especially loved Eeyore. Gorgeous little old one room school house here!

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  10. Hi there Sherry!... How it makes my heart sing... and my body to bounce to hear your own happy recollections of events from your own past! Eeyore was so wonderfully huggable... despite his low view of himself. My fav line when he lost his tail:

    "It wasn't much of a tail anyway.".... Remember that one Sherry? Acceptance versus complaint... right? Makes me remember that line still... after all of the years. A lesson in living a life with grace... despite limited "natural resources"! HA HA!!!

    Isn't it strange Sherry... that our lives... despite distance and own perceptions... are very similar in spots!

    The "Tao of Pooh"... a great read for "You" my dear... an inexpensive paperback read that gives the Pooh characters the power I mentioned in my post title! Just a thought... from a crazy... sometimes lazy ol' bear!

    Thanks for sharing your wonderfully uplifting words here Sherry! Have a "honey" of a day!

    Good Painting and Writing!
    Keep BOUNCING!!!!..It suits you Shery!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  11. Wow! What a nice way to start my day, Bruce!! I LOVE this post and beautiful painting!! I love the colors and light.

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  12. Hi there Hilda!.... Thanks for your kind words and visit!

    Glad that the post added a bit o' BOUNCE to the start of your day! Now BOUNCE on over to your table or easel and transfer that energy and that "BOUNCE"... into your usual things of beauty!

    Have a "honey" of a day!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  13. A happy sunny post. Your trees are in winter with no leaves left on them yet they are lovely in the autumn light. Is that an old school house or a church Bruce? Reminds me of the school house in Little house on the Prairie, those childhood stories that I loved so much. Today the sun has been shining bright here too, also at 4pm the light will suddenly start to diminish, we are all wanting it to stay light so very much. Yet those moonlight evenings have been such a treat too and a special place to walk at night, we must not forget the night time is a world all of it's own with foxes and owls and bright stars.....

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  14. Hi there Caroline!... Thank you for dropping by and for your interesting suggestions and questions about the post!

    The trees though leafless now... are still interesting to study and paint! One can now clearly see and understand the great struggle that takes place in the treetops to complete for space top grow... and light. Marvellous to see !

    The Dalston PS depicted in the painting is indeed a one roomed schoolhouse... just like the one Laura Wilder attended... and like the one that I taught in in the small tobacco belt hamlet of Simcoe during my first practice teaching stint in wwwwwwwwwwway back in 1965. And yes Caroline... I am that old! HA HA!!

    Those moonlit nights and star-filled skies were such a treat here as well. But they are gone tonight. It is snowing VERY hard at the moment and areas nearby in Muskoka just to the north of us... might be receiving a dump of between 10 to 30 cmm!! BBBBBRRRRR!

    I was thinking about what life might have been experienced in the school while I was painting it... and I made a wee "word thought" which encapsulates my thoughts. I will insert it into the post... if you or anyone else might be interested!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  15. A lovely post - a smackerel of honey indeed! Andrew and I were singing songs from Pooh on the weekend, actually. It is a classic, and a favorite memory we all have in common to warm our hearts. Andrew says that I'm like Owl - always pontificating.
    I also love your school poem!
    Love always, Allie xoxoxo

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  16. Did you write that! it is very good and does illustrate so well our thoughts on what happened to the lives of those who lived in a place or indeed where educated in a place. I visited an incredibly old castle recently Mary Queen of Scots's father lived there and inside the castle it is full of the portraits of those who had their life there, the furniture was tutor too. I thought a great deal about what were their lives like and did they feel the same way about things as we do today. Maybe that is the appeal of visiting old places or places empty like the old school house you painted - the link to the past that was the foundation for our 'today lives'.

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  17. Hi there Dr Jemima!...Thanks for checkin' in... and sharing memories!

    "I" miss those "Snuggles"... but have them tucked away in my heart for those grey.. and Blustery Days... that still visit! Maybe we can make the new Muppet Caper a target for the evening together that we are planning... what say ye Owl?

    "Pontificating...", says Andrew? Then ALL Shermans be "wise-crackers"... and Owl-like! HA HA!! It's in the genes... for certain!!! The other trait we share... is our common and deep love of Music... whether Pooh or Muppet tunes...... Danny Boy... Big Band charts... The Blues ...Vivaldi... or Garnet Rogers . Sweet music... to chase away sad moments!

    We are all the better for these genes! Let the tunes...music and Life...play on!

    All my love ALWAYS Allison!
    Dad
    XXXXXOOOOOXXXXX

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  18. Hi there Caroline!... It makes "Me" bouncy all over... to know that you got pleasure from reading this post... and that it leads "You" to reflect upon your own positive memories and experiences! Art can do that ... can't it?

    My post can seem, on some level like "pontificating" (Andrew and Allison's word...HA HA!!)... but I can assure everyone who reads the blog regularly... that my sole purpose for creating and maintaining the blog is to reach out across many miles to share my feelings and ideas through my art. THose are the regular visiting Friends who share my passion for makingand sharing our Art.

    An aside... the school is not at all empty. It is now been converted into a lovely residence for a "growed up" family.. with additions and an eight foot high frontal fence... inviting ... Eh? Man the parapets... double the archers! Get my idea? One can create whatever perception... one FEELS witrh any subject... rather than simply regurgitate what is front of you.

    I purposely omitted those "extras". My thinking on that day... was about another Day of Remembrance... of early life in the Oro-Medonte! Just "Me"... always a bit of a silly.. romantic ol' Bear! HA HA!!!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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