Hanging on or Letting Go
I was very fortunate during the pandemic to not be in the position of losing employment fully nor losing a close family member to this disease. But like everyone, I did not come through unscathed. In March 2020, I was working as a nurse in clinical research. Everyone in healthcare was seriously stressed during that time. Literally on the day of the announcement that our healthcare system was "shutting down" to all care but emergencies, I tore my meniscus. I didn't know that at the time, because other than hearing a loud pop and collapsing to the floor, I couldn't get any medical care. Luckily, we were allowed to work from home, so I lay on my couch until I could hobble again. It took 3 months before I could get it imaged, and another month before surgery. So, why turn to art during this time? We were mandated to take two days of vacation days each week to save the company money, so I had extra time, and I was hobbled. The sheer emotions that swirled around the world and our community were incredibly chaotic. I knew I wanted to create, but would the art reflect anger, despair, hurt, or hope?
This piece was created in response to our local Art Guild. We normally have an annual art sale called "The Clothesline Sale" which had to be cancelled during the pandemic. Instead, we were asked to create pieces with the theme "Hanging On." I was inspired by folks who were turning back to some basics during the pandemic, such as making bread, gardening, etc. I wanted to create a simple scene representing "Hanging On." But I added the words "Letting Go" to the title as well to represent the opportunity to let go of the bad and negative things in our lives that we tend to hang on to.
