In the recent past, life has been very hard on the old men I know, including my father and those of close friends.  It’s such a dramatic cycle, I keep calling it No Country for Old Men.  As sad a time this is for so many,  it’s as natural as the different stages of a blooming orchid stalk.

A little over a month ago, my dear friend, Marissa Bridge, visited her father for the last time.  Right after that, at ninety eight and a half years old, he left this world.  He lived so long, Marissa never thought he would actually be gone.

She’s a painter and actively engaged in an ongoing series she calls The Journey: all different stages of one orchid plant.  It symbolizes transitions in life, the passing of time: growth, maturity, and last but equally dynamic, decline.

With eyes on these paintings, and face to face with her, my pink heart blossomed.  Honoring cycles of life with the orchid as a metaphor, it is her hope that future viewers will understand something about life just by looking at them.

 Whether painting orchids or lilies, Marissa is painting herself, her beautiful life in flowers.

For more loveliness go to: www.marissabridgestudio.com