To walk down the patient hallways of Des Peres Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, is to journey in the midst of an art gallery. On nearly every wall there hang paintings and pictures on various canvases and backgrounds, inviting those who pass to have hope, ponder more deeply, have a sense of peace and, maybe most importantly, to find healing beyond the dedicated and skillful work of the doctors, nurses and therapists plying their vocation in the Des Peres Hospital setting. Well chosen and placed, these pieces of art are a constant quiet reminder of the artistry which is life, regardless of circumstance or setting. God is at work in this place and the labors of the artists whose creativity grace the walls convey to patient, family and visitor alike that sometimes the 'more' we seek in ourselves, those around us and even our world, often, is just waiting to be experienced right where we are, in us, through us, if only we open our eyes to see with the Artist's Eye of God.
Yesterday, as I completed a visit with one of the folk with which I am blessed to journey, I departed their room, pressed the button on the sanitizer dispenser to cleanse my hands before moving on and, as I rubbed my hands together, stood there and pondered the pictures on the wall before me. Pondering on each one, this last in the line of art I viewed stood out as though first in meaning. By Janice Scherer, St. Louis, MO., I am the Change, 2015 Acrylic, can be found at MySLART.org.
"I am the Change" . . . Standing there, looking deeply into this woman's eyes, sensing the sadness of what is going on in the world around her, yet believing in the hopefulness of what might be, I am the Change makes no apologies, offers no blame, directs no guilt. Rather, in this beautiful gift of a woman there is an emerging sense of 'regardless where I am, I am moving towards something better'. This is a woman who will not be tied down by history, by sexuality, by ethnicity, by race, by where she grew up, by what others think she can be, by glass ceilings, by what her parents taught her to think, by how her siblings shaped her days, by what her teachers did or did not teach her, by the culture in which she grew up . . . or by Ferguson, Chicago, Charleston, Paris, Colorado Springs, or San Bernardino. This is a woman whose clear steadfast gaze, with just the beginning of an offset grin, anticipates triumph in that which she undertakes.
She will not achieve perfection, nor will others dictate to her how far she can go. This woman is the change itself, in whatever measure, manner or expansiveness she can create . . . and from that place and time she looks at you and me, not in defiance, but in the calculated hope and truth which only her soul understands. I am the Change changes the one who dares to see with eyes open to new direction and, especially in the Des Peres Hospital setting where now this painting graces a space on a wall, requires the one who dares a glance to become the change as well.
In sickness or in health, in plenty or in want, for better or worse . . . I am the Change becomes the siren call to weary travelers on the road. There is no fear, there is no despair, there is no crying, there is no death anymore, for the former things have passed away. I am the Change transforms the landscape of our experience, whether in a hospital, on the roughened street or the pitted country road . . . for this woman is, both, promise and challenge and she will not be content until we have entered into her labors.
I am the Change is the Coming Christ among us. Can you see her in Him? Can you receive her in you?
Something to ponder on the Advent journey.
*With special thanks to the creativity of Janice Scherer in creating I am the Change, and to Des Peres Hospital for thoughtfully and imaginatively creating an environment for health and healing which includes such powerful works.
"I am the Change" . . . Standing there, looking deeply into this woman's eyes, sensing the sadness of what is going on in the world around her, yet believing in the hopefulness of what might be, I am the Change makes no apologies, offers no blame, directs no guilt. Rather, in this beautiful gift of a woman there is an emerging sense of 'regardless where I am, I am moving towards something better'. This is a woman who will not be tied down by history, by sexuality, by ethnicity, by race, by where she grew up, by what others think she can be, by glass ceilings, by what her parents taught her to think, by how her siblings shaped her days, by what her teachers did or did not teach her, by the culture in which she grew up . . . or by Ferguson, Chicago, Charleston, Paris, Colorado Springs, or San Bernardino. This is a woman whose clear steadfast gaze, with just the beginning of an offset grin, anticipates triumph in that which she undertakes.
She will not achieve perfection, nor will others dictate to her how far she can go. This woman is the change itself, in whatever measure, manner or expansiveness she can create . . . and from that place and time she looks at you and me, not in defiance, but in the calculated hope and truth which only her soul understands. I am the Change changes the one who dares to see with eyes open to new direction and, especially in the Des Peres Hospital setting where now this painting graces a space on a wall, requires the one who dares a glance to become the change as well.
In sickness or in health, in plenty or in want, for better or worse . . . I am the Change becomes the siren call to weary travelers on the road. There is no fear, there is no despair, there is no crying, there is no death anymore, for the former things have passed away. I am the Change transforms the landscape of our experience, whether in a hospital, on the roughened street or the pitted country road . . . for this woman is, both, promise and challenge and she will not be content until we have entered into her labors.
I am the Change is the Coming Christ among us. Can you see her in Him? Can you receive her in you?
Something to ponder on the Advent journey.
*With special thanks to the creativity of Janice Scherer in creating I am the Change, and to Des Peres Hospital for thoughtfully and imaginatively creating an environment for health and healing which includes such powerful works.
3 comments:
One painting and you saw all of that. It's as if you could see through my eyes while she came to life on canvas. I am the artist who painted this piece and the depth with which you interpret and write about it is amazing. Thank you for taking the time to really look at it and understand it. It is my intention that the viewer will find their connection to my art and how it speaks to them. You've done that. Thank you, and blessings to you!
I am the marketing director at Des Peres Hospital and coordinate the exhibit with our art partners. On behalf of all our care providers and artists, thank you so much for this incredibly thoughtful and thought-provoking post. Our intention with our art exhibit has always been to provide patients and visitors with the opportunity to "get out of the moment" by giving them something else to focus on. I'm so happy we are accomplishing that.
You see a lot. And you share what you see. You are an artist and your do your art. You use your eyes and you use words to create relationship. The conduit of relationship. A connection, a place where soul meets soul, a place of the heart.
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