The song of the Hermit Thrush is one of the most ethereal sounds I’ve heard. I first recall hearing it here, at the property that I currently call home. It sounded like love mixed with woodflute and rainsticks. Cassidy and I listened in total awe of the flute-like song and we set forth to identify it. I would have imagined that the color-filled tune would have come from a flashy bird so I was surprised to realize it was coming from the demure little brown bird that hopped along the ground silently most of the time. It takes to the high branches to launch into song at dawn and dusk.
The Hermit Thrush’s song has been the background of much of our shared time together. Cassidy is a fabulous musician and so before I tuck in for an evening of painting and he tucks into his music making we like to sit outside and soak in the woods. We feel so blessed when the Hermit Thrush joins us. If we sit out long enough the frogs will join in, like the sweet Boreal Chorus Frog depicted here. If we stick our noses to the air we can smell the sweet perfumes of the plants wafting through as the temperature shifts and we can watch as the sun sets lower, shifting the shadows and colors. Those full sounding choruses feel like an all consuming love. I can feel my heart swell in those moments, like the operatic chest of this Hermit Thrush. I like to hold onto that feeling so it is there to call on when I need it. That is what this painting is.
I started it years ago, and it has been on my mind ever since. My skill level had not yet caught up with the piece so I waited until it did and I finished this painting this past spring. I think of this piece as a reminder of joy. A visual depiction of how the world is bigger than our minds. How the larger universe is much bigger than the human world all together. The most beautiful song we might ever take in is when we step out of the human noise and tune into the rhythm of the larger reality we all share. That simple fact connects us all. Find your sweet moments, dear one💗
