What I have learned from residencies and traveling is that anything can happen, everything can change and it is beneficial to learn to adapt quickly. Stay flexible. This is something I find myself thinking of right now. Everything looks familiar outside… but I know it is also different. A change of routine… or a lack of routine. A fresh slate, as it were. And so here I find myself in my second-floor apartment at my kitchen-table-studio, trying to get my head around the strangeness of what is happening and trying to figure out how I fit into the picture and how I can adapt.

These past few weeks have been difficult ones for me, as I am sure they have also been for many of you navigating life right now. I am trying to remind myself that difficult doesn’t mean bad. Challenges are not bad. A change of routine is not bad. When life is smooth it’s easy to click into “default mode”, but when something upsets the expected flow I am reminded of the value in paying attention.

Especially when their are voids in life, things that are missing (like a job or a family member), it is important to be thankful. One of the countless things I am thankful for is art. It helps me to process, it gives me space to be quiet, and it settles my brain from working in high gear. To take time to stop thinking about life’s complications and slow down and concentrate on the tip of my pen and the line it is drawing is freeing. Strangely enough, I think when I am unaware I am thinking I think the most effectively (sorry if that doesn’t make sense). I encourage all of you to do something creative today–trust me, it’s not just for the “gifted” or the “artistically inclined”. It is about the journey after all, not the destination.

I have been loving my Picture By Post project! Through it I have had the opportunity to reconnect with friends and make new ones. It has been something fun and encouraging for me to focus on and I have enjoyed many walks down the road to the postbox with a happy stack of envelopes. It’s actually strange to think that during this time of distancing I’ve connected with way more people than I would have otherwise. I am grateful for the conversations, the connections and the lovely photos that people have sent me back through this project. The pictures have been posted all across Canada (from right here in Victoria all the way to Nova Scotia), the USA, England and even to Germany!  I would like to say thank you to everyone who has participated so far (and if you would like to have a Picture By Post mailed to yourself or a friend, please click here to contact me).

Thank you @chirp2lou for bringing your Pictures By Post to the beach and sharing these lovely photos!

I would love to hear what you are doing to deal with all the changes right now. How are you adapting? Have you tried something new? Or maybe picked up an old project to finish?

Stay strong. Be encouraged. Ask for help if you need it. We are in this together. =)