:^]

“Ripples in the Sky”

I really love the sea.

I was born far away from it, surrounded by forests, fields, rivers and lakes. I didn’t see the sea for the first time until I was about seventeen, when I finally traveled to the Black Sea.

Before I got married, I traveled and spent my holidays by the sea whenever I could. I never needed a swimming pool. I could spend hours by the water, watching sunrises and sunsets. It never felt too hot or too cold. I simply loved being there.

After I met my husband, we started spending more time at lakes instead. I adapted to his interests because I wanted us to spend more time together.

And then the children came, and I brought the sea back into my life ,but in a very different way.

Anyone who has children will probably understand. Sand gets everywhere, the sea is salty, their eyes sting, the beach is too hot… and somehow the swimming pool always wins.So for almost ten years now, most of my holidays have been spent by the pool.But wherever we travel, I still try to find my way back to the sea. Even if it’s only for a short walk, just to look at it, or to sit quietly on the shore in the evening and watch the sun disappear.

This painting came from one of those evenings in 2021.

Some things in our lives change completely. But somehow, we keep finding little ways back to the things we love.

Writing 和風細雨 (he2feng1xi4yu3; gentle breeze and light rain) with a cat's tail on a water-writing mat.

Water-writing mats turn black when wet and return to their original colour once dry, so they are often used to practise calligraphy with water. The black colour allows you to see your writing clearly, and the mat can be reused as soon as the writing dries and disappears.