Image of the Week: Gratitude
© D. Yael Bernhard
Here is a small painting I did as part of a three-month inquiry on gratitude. From January 29th until now, I've kept a gratitude journal which has filled two pocket-size notebooks, beginning before the COVID-19 pandemic arrived here in upstate New York, and extending through the peak of it. Originally I took the practice on at the suggestion of a friend, but it evolved into my own process. Over the weeks I changed my approach several times – first listing as many blessings in my life as I could think of, then breaking them into subtle nuances, and finally using descriptive sentences to focus on my most heartfelt gratitude – for example:
I’m grateful for the wild merganser ducks that migrate through my valley each year, riding the rivulets in my stream, making my spirits bob along lightly, as they do.
I'm grateful for my daughter's safe return home, healthy and happy.
I’m grateful for a day that got better, ending with a peaceful, productive evening.
I'm grateful for the choice of where to turn my eye.
I’m grateful for you, my reader, and your inquisitive mind.
Gratitude is a small study for a future, larger painting. What you see here is almost as big as the original. The image began forming last year in my dance class. I've been a passionate student of West African dance for the past 36 years. I love the people in this longtime dance class – and somehow, immersing myself in this shared rhythmic energy also gives me a greater sense of connection to all people. The movements are so familiar that despite the intense exertion, my mind relaxes and wanders. Many of the hand movements evoke offering or receiving – or both. One day during a dance called Soli, a feeling of energy circulating through me, flowing into and out of my body from the world around me, filled me with joy – and this image crystallized.
These interdisciplinary connections are what feeds my art. Music, dance, writing, and reflection went into this little painting. I had an irresistible urge to cross-fertilize the image with yet another element: the gentle, hopeful pastel colors of spring – for which I am infinitely grateful. The final painting will probably be done in a different palette.
Most of all, what came out of this extended inquiry is an understanding that in its essence, gratitude is interactive. Every blessing, every gift given or received, every form of nourishment is, or enables, some form of interaction. Think about that for a few months . . . and if you're so inclined, let me know your thoughts.
A good week to all!
D Yael Bernhard