The pineapple is a type of Bromeliad. From Spanish Moss (also known as Pele’s Hair) to the Pineapple, bromeliads come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Pineapples are a symbol of hospitality, often given as gifts to those new to the islands.

Pineapples make for fun paintings — I've done several!

"Growing Sunshine"

A fan recently mentioned that he’d like to see a painting of a pineapple at the beach and I thought, “What fun!”

So I took a pineapple to the beach to take photos of it up at the waters edge. I didn't know what it would look like there.

Amazingly I captured a few photos of a wave crashing over the pineapple just before the force of the water pushed it over.

That pineapple went on to become a delicious smoothie and then a painting!

This is just the beginning of the painting, it hints of what's to come.

When we mix things up, put something different into the stir-fry or wear polka dots with plaids, we take a tiny risk.

I've worked a little more on the top of the pineapple and around the splash.

We stay alive by nudging ourselves outside our comfort zone, even just a little bit.

I’m sure some people thought I was crazy taking photos of "my pineapple" at the beach. I didn’t care. I honestly didn’t know what it would look like, how much fun it would be, or how much it would make me laugh!

Laughter is Life on a good day!

Reach for those good days, it's within us all to grab that gusto we often hear about. It means reaching outside of ourselves.

Go ahead, reach just a little further outside your comfort zone, try something new, live Large!

I met her at the beach, Bellows Beach, one of the most beautiful long beaches on Oahu.

She stands stately and tall at the beach’s tree line. She’s been standing there for decades, maybe even a century.

Her limbs are outstretched, soaking in the morning sun and daring the trade winds to try to blow her down. They don’t, they invigorate and strengthen her.

Fearless, she relishes her position on Earth. Her wisdom runs both deep and tall.

She knows who she is and she knows her worth. She trusts the world will provide all that she needs.

Time spent in Mother Nature nurtures our spirit. It reminds us on a deep, often unconscious level, that we are a part of the natural world around us.

We’ve built so much on top of Mother Nature, and often marvel at that part of the world too. But that’s not the part we turn to when we need to feel revitalized.

When we need to “get away and clear our head” we turn to Mother Nature. Like a trusted companion, ever present, yet often ignored, she's always there for us.

Perhaps that’s why we call her Mother.

Mother Nature factors into most of my art. She’s even the inspiration for many of my abstract paintings.

Mother Nature catches my eye. My imagination transforms her energy onto paper. Look closely and you will feel her there.

Art is a natural form of communication. Art speaks to us on conscious and unconscious levels.

We fill our homes with living plants and often share our space with a pet (or several) to keep Mother Nature nearby.

Art is another way to keep Mother Nature close —one that doesn’t need feeding.

My Comfort zone has vanished — AGAIN!

Beware! Once you pass your comfort zone, keep going!
There is no turning back!

No worries, you will reach a new comfort zone — although it might be a while before you arrive.

Take heart; expansion, growth and change are what you wanted.

You wanted to go beyond the places you’ve been before, to "Feel the Force”, the pull of new adventures.

Feeling the excitement of new adventures is not the same
as going on those great adventures.

There are always ups and downs on the great adventures we read about in books or watch in movies.

In life, these ups and downs take longer to experience.

Momentum is a powerful neutral force — yet a force nonetheless.

Inertia is an opposing and equally powerful force.

I think of inertia as more of a negative force, but maybe it’s just HEAVY. It takes powerful lifting to get moving once inertia has set in.

Fear is often the force behind my inertia.

When I’m afraid to take action — which often means I’m afraid to start a new project, inertia digs in its heels.

Dread is one of Inertia’s best friends.

The emotional space that Dread occupies is immense.

Dread and fear dance maniacally round and round, eating up precious moments and consuming vast amounts of time and energy.

Awareness is key, and is the first step to conquering Dread, Fear, and Inertia.

Once we realize the crazy “do-si-do” going on in our brain (and stomach), we can devise tools to “stop the music”.

Changing our focus helps us to change our thoughts. Once we’re looking at something different (a new novel or movie), or we’re exercising, our focus softens and relaxes.

With relaxation and a calm breath, comes the power
to change our thoughts.

Changing thoughts, whether or not they’re related to the cause of our dread/fear/inertia (“D/F/I”), helps move us into a neutral zone.

From a neutral zone, we can reach for better feeling thoughts in general and eventually to thoughts about the cause of our “D/F/I”.

From here we take action, even the tiniest action will help.

Before you know it, momentum takes over and you’re back in business.

This painting was started in front of my Hide-N-Seek watercolor class at Hawaiian Graphics. I wanted my students to see what it feels like to create a painting that's asking to be painted. It's a very different energy to paint something that's calling you rather than painting something just for the sake of painting.

We are not being called to DO More.

We are being called to BE MORE of Ourselves and to DO DIFFERENTLY.

The world is shifting in a myriad of ways.

This is the time of darkness in the Northern Hemisphere (and increasing Lightness in the Southern).

Those of us in the tropics experience the shift as well; it’s just more subtle. If you were to visit me today you might not notice the seasonal change, but those of us living here definitely do!

This time of year is traditionally used to let our lands lie fallow, giving them a chance to rest.

It’s also a time to let our minds mull over the past year; it’s a time of introspection.

At the beginning of 2016, I declared it the “second-coming” of Sweet Sixteen.
It was a chance for us to revisit our younger selves and to make any course correction we wanted to make.

What will 2017 bring? What do we want to see, to feel, to experience in 2017?

It’s up to us — it’s always up to each one of us!

Resist the distractions of the world around you.

Focus on what YOU WANT!

We have the opportunity to shine our lights brightly, to bring our desires into focus.

We must keep our eyes trained on the “prize” that we seek.

Don’t worry; we can’t get this “wrong”.

Opportunities abound each day.

“Do-Overs” are a natural part of the creative process.