Artists of the Wall Festival - I just can't believe it

We made it to Season 2 for the Artists of the Wall Festival - so few programs actually make it to Season 2 so I'm stoked.

I knew we were going to make Season 2 because we decided at the end of last year that we wanted to do it again.

2016 was the 23rd running of this festival and the theme was "Drawing on the Lake"

"Drawing on the lake" oh boy did we have a tough time coming up with ideas....literal, figurative, allegorical, how do you interpret that?

Here's what we did.

Arms and hands are holding knitting needles which are knitting a tapestry of leaves from the water within the lake.  Those leaves are then filled in with the names of the 49 victims of the Pulse Nightclub massacre in Orlando, Florida.  You see what you want to see, you interpret it as you like, the same as when you look at a person and see what you want to see.  The choice is yours.  

#WeArePulse  

#LoveWins

I was so honored to find out this morning.....that our team actually won 2nd place!  I know my friend Marcio knew it all along, but  I never think I'm going to win.  

The Happiest Thing I've Seen

I went to visit a friend last week and while we were out walking around the neighborhood I saw the happiest thing I think that I've ever seen in my life.

Picture it:  One of the first nice Spring days we've had this year, the sun was out, the clouds were out, the leaves on the trees were out, it was gorgeous.  

We had decided to walk down to Vedgewater Garden and check out the plot.  Last year my friend was able to get a plot and we had a grand harvest.  He's signed on for Season 2, I told him he didn't realize how lucky he was, most programs get cancelled after Season 1 - and he had made it to Season 2.

He'd already been to the garden and cleaned it up, in fact he found a bunny hatch under a big oregano bush that had grown overwinter, there were four cute little bunnies calling it home.

Garden Bunny

We took our time in the garden and had a leisurely walk home through the neighborhood.  As we were turning a corner we heard what we thought were shouts, but only once or twice and then nothing so we paid no attention.  Then we heard it again, but now it sounded like singing.........and laughing.......and it grew louder.

Before we knew it, it had passed us and we sat there trying to take it all in, I was astonished at what I'd seen.  (ooohhhh clickbait)

We had just seen an old man (I mean OLD man) in a wheelchair, in a "contraption" holding the wheelchair, attached to a bicycle that was being peddled by a young man.  I had no time to pull out my camera, I had no time to take it what was going on, but it was the happiest thing I think I have ever seen.

The look on the old man's face was priceless, like he was running a marathon, like he was re-enacting that scene from Titanic on the bow, like he was 15 years old again.  He was singing at the top of his lungs, and he was laughing and basically hootin' and hollerin'.  The boy powering the contraption had the biggest smile on his face, getting satisfaction beyond belief from the reaction he was getting from the old man. 

I can only assume that this gentleman's grandson had created this device (there's a picture of something similar) so that he could take his Grandfather on a bike ride, to allow him to feel the wind blowing on his face after probably being stuck at home for years.  

But as we watched them pass by, suddenly a car came barreling down the street blowing it's horn and caused the whole bike wheelchair combination to flip and end up on it's side, an ambulance was called and the old man......nope, that didn't happen, but I couldn't leave you with such a sweet, fantastically touching story and not make you think something bad happened.....it didn't, something wonderful happened.  

I hope that man gets to go on a bike ride every day!