Painting In Pixels, for now… And Reminiscing

I’ve had a desire to learn to paint in watercolor for a very long time. 

Growing up, I would spend a week or so, each summer, visiting with my grandparents.  One of my favorite things to do was to sit and watch my grandpa paint with oils, and with watercolor.  I would sit for hours and watch him transform a plain white background into beautiful scenes and seacapes, and yet they felt like mere minutes.  My grandma would be in the kitchen baking a pie or creating some sort of amazingly delicious meal, and I’d always feel horrible for just sitting on my rump… but it was so hard to pull myself away.  I would sit and watch until I felt on the verge of culpability, I didn’t want to be accused of being lazy.  

I know my grandpa enjoyed having me nearby, and I’m sure my grandma didn’t mind my sitting and watching him, yet I’d feel this inner sense of guilt for sitting so long and I didn’t want to ignore my grandmother.  When I’d finally pull myself away from grandpa’s painting to find grandma in the kitchen, I was never disappointed.  In the same way that I was in awe by my grandpa’s ability to take blobs of paint from his pallate and turn them into marvelous works on his canvas… I was equally amazed to watch my grandma reach into her cupboards and ice box, as she’d call it, and pull out simple ingredients only to turn them into gourmet creations.  Everything she made tasted savory… from scratch, often times without a recipe… amazingly delicious! 

Once in the kitchen with grandma, you couldn’t pull my wide-eyed self away… I was observing a master at her craft.  She loved to construct huge, delicious meals and then spread them across her long dining-room table with her beautiful hands.  I can remember being disgruntled to see her pull certain vegetables from the refrigerator, then amused to see how fun and attractive she made their preparation seem, and finally amazed to find how delightful she made them taste.

I love my memories and am grateful for those days with my grandparents.  I love the appreciation for life that I found in them.  Someday, I’m gonna paint with watercolor… for now I’ll adjust my photos and pretend that I can.

Someday I’d love to be able to prepare a gourmet meal from the things I have on hand, and know exactly what spices to use when, and whip out pies, and cakes, and tarts…but for now I’ll stick to the recipe books, I’ll practice and pracitce and practice.  In fact, check back tomorrow for a practice piece of pie, featuring my grandmother’s yummy pie crust!  I’ll read directions, measure precisely, and hope for the best…