I am not an active Facebook user and while I was away facilitating Art Quilt Campus at St. Peter’s Abbey over the past two weeks I completely ignored most social media channels. After nearly three weeks I decided to check my page this morning and reality hit on many levels.

I loved this quote my friend Elaine had posted last week: “There is no such thing as “as soon as.” As soon as means “never.” As soon as means that someday you are going to regret having blown the invitation to create.” This was my invitation to unleash my creative impulses and it starts today.

Why this sudden sense of urgency? I scrolled a little lower on my Facebook page and was immensely saddened by the death of a longtime friend on August 14th. Shena and I met in 1991 shortly after Colin and I had purchased our business “The Fiber Hut”. At the time Shena was an accomplished basket weaver. Soon she was teaching classes for us and our friendship unfolded. She left Calgary in 2001 or 2002 to move to the West Coast. We lost track of one another for a few years until Easter 2013 when I connected with her through Facebook. Her posts were filled with a passion for life, art and the environment. Then illness struck and just a few weeks ago her health began to deteriorate fast. I knew it was serious but hope never subsided that I could find a block of time to go and see her in person, give her one last hug and say good bye to her in person. This chance has passed. Shena will forever be in my heart. She was an inspiration! And I know she found the peace she was seeking.

Life goes on for the rest of us. How can we move on without sadness? One step at a time… one stitch at a time, one brush stroke at a time. Art heals and makes us aware of the beauty and peace it adds to our hurried days. Today I slow down, I embrace life and set one foot in front of the other to follow the path ahead.

23 Aug This entry was published on August 23, 2016 at 9:58 am. It’s filed under Art, Creativity Update, Journaling, Motivational, Nature photography, staying in touch and tagged contemplative, Facebook - benefits and perils, following the path, loosing a friend, seizing the moment, thoughts on loosing a friend. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.