Tsunami of Sadness

I am feeling much the same way I felt in 2004/2005, when an earthquake and tsunami caused such devastation in India, Indonesia and Sumatra. Back then, I was in a monthly tip-in swap and ironically the prompt - released in mid December - for January 2005 was "The Ocean".

This is the art I did for that prompt -

I took it out yesterday and read what I had written on the back in January of 2005...

"When I think of the Ocean I am most often focusing on the beach. I think of summer time visits with my family. Strolling along the sand dunes in quiet conversation with my mother, searching for the perfect shell with my children or watching them play joyfully in the waves. I love to spend the night at the beach and to blissfully fall asleep to the distant sound of the ocean coming into shore. The soothing sounds of the shifting tide, gently rocking me into a deep sleep. There is nothing like the fresh sea air to clear the cobwebs and replenish the spirit.

The past few weeks have reminded me that the Ocean is an integral part of a much larger, living planet. A temperamental entity whose mood shifts as easily as the sands on the beaches we all love so much. On December 26, 2004 an earthquake, measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale, occurred deep below the surface of the ocean and caused the sea to swell into a giant series of waves that would rock the Asian region. It absolutely destroyed millions of lives.

We will never know just how many people perished as a result of this disaster. As of January 21, 2005 the confirmed dead stands at 162,000 and still climbing. Millions more have been left homeless and destitute - of family and money! Fourteen nations were hit by this devastating natural disaster. Every day, for the first week, new numbers of confirmed dead would come in and I found the information too much to comprehend. I was horrifed and filled with sorrow. I usually try to record my feelings in an artistic way in my journal. I felt moved to share my journal art as a tip-in for this month."

I will make a new art journal entry about Japan this weekend when I have time, but for today I am reminded how fragile life is. How we are but a speck on the planet. We best enjoy the time we have - every moment - no matter how insignificant it may seem. We need to appreciate all the joys, friends and family that we have - every day! You never know what tomorrow may bring, my friends :-)

All for today my lovelies, kso

xoxoxoxo