Tag Archives: birds

2012-12-16 #1642

I made this doodle on Friday when I first heard the news about the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary. I was about to head off to a client meeting when my eye caught a posting that seemed ominous. Since I had a few minutes to spare I clicked the link and read the news and watched a short video that recapped what was known at that time. It wasn’t very detailed yet, but it was more than enough to be horrible. I felt punched by a wave of emotion. The fact that this was an elementary school – the last time of innocence for so many kids in this grow-up-too-fast world – it was so much to process. Too much to make any kind of sense of. I knew had to put something out to find a handle and some balance for myself. I don’t think a drawing has ever come out of me so quickly or with such urgency.

I realized then that I was late for my appointment so I didn’t have time to do what I normally do with my doodles – scan them, clean up the scan to remove any dust marks and try to get the color a little closer to the original, then make a post here. I snapped a quick shot on Instagram which I’ve been mostly using for things in my sketchbook or doodles on the go in restaurants and such. I wanted to put the thought out there right away, but I also knew I wanted to come back and share a little bit more with this one. I just couldn’t do it right away.

I finally got around to scanning the drawing today and I hope you find it a warm thought, a small comfort. Maybe as a thought, as a practice, it can help you if you ever feel a little out of balance in this world where senselessness and horror can so quickly appear from nowhere and eclipse our vision. It is harder to see in moments like this, because the shadow is so big and mirky, but I have to believe that the shadow is always smaller than the light. I have to believe in good and the practice of spreading the good and the positive.

More Hug, Less Harm.