We are Good

Lately, it feels like every headline is telling the same story. Humans are terrible. Humans are greedy. Oh my gosh, the greed. War. Forests cut down. Oceans filling with plastic. And somewhere in all of that, a heavy feeling settles into our bodies — shame. At least it does for me. We are ruining the planet. I carry that grief with me often. I think maybe you do too. 

But here’s the thing I keep coming back to: We are also incredibly beautiful. We have stories. We have love and meaning. We have music. We have music! Seriously!  Have you ever been on the subway? It’s loud. Dirty. Everyone staring at the floor. Each person sealed inside their own loneliness. Then you put on your headphones and turn on a favorite song. Suddenly everything changes. The same train becomes cinematic. The same strangers feel interesting, even tender. You start to notice faces. Light. Movement…. Music did that. It transformed the moment. It changed the world. Humans made that music. Humans are rad. 

Books do this too. A single sentence can crack open your heart. Or change your mind. A story can make you see the world through someone else’s eyes — and suddenly your own life feels bigger, more meaningful, more connected. That’s not destruction. That’s art and beauty. That’s humanity at its best. 

And here I am painting. My art reminds you how beautiful we are… how beautiful YOU are. Look! We can create beauty and meaning and art. We are not all destruction and greed. There is grace and peace. There is meaning and love when being human. My paintings are a prayer. That not only you can feel the beauty of humanity while looking at my art but also someday soon we can fully honor our human selves as we live in harmony with each other and Mother Nature.