Refuge

We take refuge in outer things, people and contexts, but we also take refuge in many things within, like love, acceptance, appreciation of our self and our being here one more day, our capacity to awaken a little each day, our grit and determination even when we are navigating rough seas, and our basic values. As Rick Hanson notes, knowledge, learning and facts are also a source of refuge grounding us in what is, no matter what. Art can be another deep refuge that can often save the day. Today, I am posting a painting I’ve been working on this November, accompanied by a quote from one of my many favourite artists, Edward Sakagian:

“The fear of confinement is the absence of space contrasts, the inside and the outside, absence or narrowness of space. The fear of confinement is the fear of imprisonment, which is the same as the fear of scattering, of waste, of squandering, of fatigue. I desire to be guarded, but not to be imprisoned. I desire peace, but not stagnation. I desire liveliness, but not noise. I desire space, but not scattering.”