桜梅桃李 (o-bai-to-ri) “never compare yourself to others”
This yo-ji-juku-go (Japanese 4-character idiom) is comprised of 4 beloved Japanese trees. They are:
桜 = cherry (sakura)
梅 = apricot (ume)
桃 = peach (momo)
李 = plum (sumomo)
Each of these iconic trees blossoms in its own time and in its own unique way.
桜 (sakura) are of course the cherry blossom trees famous for blooming spectacularly and incredibly briefly once a year, usually in April. Sakura trees in full bloom is an annual event, and people go to their local park to see them, take photos, and have picnics underneath them. It's such a big deal that it's reported on the weather forecast, with reporters commenting on how quickly the "sakura front" is moving northwards across the country.
梅 (ume) is the "ume" in umeshu! This is a sweet liqueur which is made from soaking ume in sake. It tastes amazing, and is one of the things I miss most about Japan. Japanese learners will no doubt recognise "ume" as usually being translated as "plum", however it is technically closer to the Western apricot.
桃 (momo) is one of the best-loved fruits in Japan. There is even a fairy story called "Momo-taro" about a little boy who comes from inside a peach. He grows up to be a great hero, of course, and saves everyone from a demon. "Momo" is also a fairly common girls' name.
李 (sumomo) are known as "Japanese plums" or "Asian plums". The trees are famous for their delicate white flowers. They usually bloom just before the sakura. Whilst not as famous or as showy as sakura, they are well-loved for their elegance, and for being a sign of spring.
This one-off calligraphy artwork is available on my Etsy shop here:
An original shodō (Japanese calligraphy) work - not a print! 桜梅桃李 (o-bai-to-ri) “never compare yourself to others” This yo-ji-juku-go (Japan
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Standing at the threshold of a forgotten train culvert, one feels the heavy pulse of the 1880s: a time when iron and sweat carved a path through the ancient wild. This stone arch, moss-slicked, hidden by thick brush, and rooted deep in the loam, was birthed from the necessity to honor the water’s path while supporting the weight of a changing world.
Like the Ogham script carved into stone and wood, the culvert serves as a sigil of endurance, teaching us that true resilience is not the act of stopping the flow, but the wisdom of providing it a safe passage through the heavy foundations of our lives.
To walk the path of the Druid is to recognize that we are often caught between the immovable mountain of our circumstances and the relentless river of our emotions. This culvert represents the bridge between these two states. It does not fight the stream. It cradles it.
When the storms of life swell the creek into a torrent, the culvert remains a steadfast guardian, unyielding under the thundering tracks of time. It reminds us that we can build internal structures strong enough to hold the weight of our ambitions without drowning the vital, fluid spirit that keeps us alive.
Observe the masonry, where the stones have settled into a permanent, silent pact with the earth. Over a century of frost and thaw has only tightened their grip. In our own lives, resilience is often found in this slow settling: the way we allow our experiences to interlock until we are no longer a collection of fragments, but a unified force.
The Druids revered the Oak for its ability to turn sunlight into iron-hard wood. Here, human hands have turned stone into a hollowed trunk, proving that our creations can mirror the strength of the grove if they are built with respect for the natural order.
There is a profound humility in being a vessel. The culvert does not seek the glory of the locomotive that screams overhead, nor does it demand to be the destination of the water. It simply exists to facilitate. When we find ourselves overwhelmed, we can look to this stone throat as a metaphor for our own capacity to process. Resilience is the ability to stay hollow and open so that the pressures of the world do not cause us to burst, but instead pass through us, leaving us washed clean and still standing.
Notice how the weeds have claimed the damp edges of the stones, turning a cold engineering feat into a living sanctuary. This is the ultimate expression of the Awen: the flowing inspiration of the universe. Even the harshest structures of our survival can become hosts for beauty if we allow time to soften our edges. Our scars and the rigid walls we built to survive the 1880s of our own history can, with enough seasons, become the very places where new life finds its footing.
In the silence of the woods, the culvert speaks of the long game. It has seen the steam engines vanish and the diesel engines roar, yet its purpose remains unchanged. It is a quiet druid of the valley, witnessing the cycles of death and rebirth without losing its integrity.
To be resilient is to understand that we are part of a lineage of endurance. We are built on the foundations of those who came before us, and like this culvert, we must ensure that the waters we pass down to the future are directed with intention and care.
When you feel the weight of the world pressing down like tons of iron and timber, remember the stones beneath the tracks. Seek the inner architecture that allows you to remain grounded while the world rushes past. Be the silent arch that honors the stream. Be the persistent stone that refuses to crumble under the rain. By aligning ourselves with the patient strength of the earth, we transform from fragile beings into timeless conduits of the spirit, as enduring and vital as a century-old bridge in the heart of the woods.
hi your artwork is is incredible and so delicious to look at like a chocolate lava cake
(also your linework reminds me of Norman Lindsay and i am very very very jealous😫 i never have the patience for it)
thank you!
did you know? Lindsay is one of my favorite artist! I'm not worth a 10% of his skill tho ahah
I spent hours fixating on his hatching style and the way he sculpt light and darkness with just B&W, I think you can immediate recognize my inspiration in him, if you never seen his work this lil collection is for you:
I made a lil photo thing showing inspriations of my Spongebob Musical design
Here's the Normal one without the outlines
Also tbh the hair one I kinda accidentally drew out of habit because I was drawing springbont-ts SpongeBob alot that i forgot how to draw my style to draw his hair but tbh I kinda prefer the one I draw now because I draw his hair like pinkie pie anyways yeah :3
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Whilst exploring Pinterest for inspiration to expand my own poster design, I came across these designs. They align with my focus on Māori patterns, traditionally seen on a marae, yet utilised here to create a deeper sense of movement through the layering of text and pattern.
