By Betsy P.
I call this one Social Distancing Cacti. It’s hard to tell what the scale of the painting is, but the cacti are, in fact, 6 feet apart. I’ve been thinking about how cacti in the wilderness absorb the same water even when they are separated spatially. They also retain water really well and make it through harsh dry seasons. May the St. John’s community be a healthy forest of spread out cacti, soaking up the same living water for endurance.
This one is Moonset. The sun is often used as a type or metaphor for Christ, and the moon as the Church on Earth, or its temporal existence. A setting moon makes me think of the grief and observance of what is lost in this world. I painted this for a mentor when a precious member of his family passed away. The moon is setting, but the verdant colors and flourishing nature are like a glimmer of the reality of the coming New Heavens and New Earth, but it’s subdued with some melancholy blues, rightly so, to give space and time for mourning.
Life Together 