In a Heartbeat

Description

It was New Years. I was 12 weeks pregnant, ecstatic with life, and on a trip in the California forest with friends. We were staying at this cute cabin in a beautiful forest, planning our goals and dreams for the year. Most of my goals revolved around learning how to be a mom.

It was the middle of the afternoon when the rain started. I LOVE the rain, being from the desert, and went for a walk in the woods. There were little streams forming and the air was fresh with petrichor. I was watching leaves floating down a stream and standing next to this beautiful tree with wood that turned deep red in the rain. The moss and textures all captured me. I remember feeling so much joy for this human experience, looking forward to so much. It was a tender moment. The painting is of this tree.

Symbolism: This tree, to me, represents the little things in life that can bring so much joy if we are open to them. I actually intended for the shape of this painting to represent what a heartbeat looks like on a scan. I think there is so much love that you feel when you hear your baby’s heartbeat for the first time and it completely interrupts your current life. I also think this piece shows how grief can interrupt our ability to see joy in the small things but that we can find our way back to that sense of joy with time.