Gratitude & the family tree

I have such gratitude, especially for the creative bits of my life that continue to grow & thrive. I am so pleased with each new pet portrait commission, which is really where it all started… each time I get a new one, I smile. I dropped off a painting yesterday to a very funny lady who had commissioned her second portrait & I will never ever tire of seeing the faces light up as people recognize their pet in the painting. It causes me heart-swelling, sugary sweet gratitude that carries me around the rest of the day.

I love hearing about the pets & how it is the smartest dog or the best cat. It is especially fun when I get to meet the pet after spending hours staring at a photo while painting it. Once I saw a dog at the vet’s office & was confused because I couldn’t figure out how I knew the dog when I had never seen the person she owned before, until I heard the woman mention the dogs name... I had painted the dog, as a gift from the woman’s friend. Mystery solved.

So when I still feel such gratitude & happiness over that creative outlet, imagine how happy I was when I experienced this first: remember the family tree I finally posted on Etsy on Monday? I sold one, that very same day. That has never happened to me- what a nice surprise. A surprise that made my creative gratitude grow a bit more… not unlike that tree. And it seems as if the more gratitude I have, the more I find happening in my creative little life to be thankful for.