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Who is that woman? She looks familiar… It’s, Amanda! She’s back!
Well, for the most part.
I know it may have seemed like I disappeared off the face of the planet. But trust me. I was not abducted by aliens. My life was consumed with the 283 Holiday Artist Market and after that ended I was thrown head first into commission work. These two commissions will save Christmas, so to say they are important is a wild understatement. Commission number one involved a leap of faith too. I was asked if I could paint a portrait of a horse. Without blinking an eye, I said yes. I’ve never painted a horse with acrylic paints on canvas, but horses are not unknown to me. I grew up around horses and began riding when I was seven years old. I did lessons and I did shows and I have numerous ribbons. I also loved collecting Breyer Horses and using them as models to draw in my sketchbook.
Sadly, it’s a time in my life that I don’t talk about much. We moved away from my life with horses when I was about twelve years old. I took some lessons after the move to Georgia, from a brilliant instructor who let me ride on her Dressage horse. But it was never the same–that and teenage hormones upset my emotional balance. The combination was lethal. I left riding behind and there has been a hole in my heart ever since. Jump ahead twenty some odd years and now it’s not a hole I can so easily mend. The disease that wreaks havoc in my joints doesn’t allow me to ride at all–at least not without serious pain and recovery time.
But I still have my Breyer horses and I still have my art. Those will have to be enough.
This is Stoney, my landlords horse. He is just about done and then I’m moving onto a painting of his wife’s cat. Painting the cat will coax me out of his mood. I promise! After the cat it’s onto an orchid and then I might be free for the rest of the holidays. Free to start planning the changes I want to make in 2011. Free to spend more time reading late a night and sharing all my favorite books. Free to create on my own terms. Free to write!
Yes, changes are a coming.
Amanda Makepeace's Imagination Run Amok 
This is GORGEOUS, Amanda! Really warm and lovely. I’m sure your landlord will be delighted. What illness are you suffering from? Your spirit is so amazing! I would never know you were ill if you hadn’t told us. Best wishes for a healthy and happy holiday season!
Thank you, Cindy! I don’t know if it is spirit or just plain stubbornness. LOL My troubles began when I had Cancer at 17 years old and since then it’s been a battle with one thing or another. But I don’t like to let it get to me or stop me from living my life. Right now the most troublesome has been an autoimmune disorder–my diagnosis has gone back and forth from Lupus to Mixed Connective Tissue Disorder to some unknown inflammatory arthritis. Ether way it’s my own body attacking itself. Doesn’t help I have a deformity in my back too. The autoimmune arthritis is just one of three illness, but I keep going with breaks. 😉 Happy holidays to you too and your family!
Amanda, the horse looks great! I’m so glad you shared some of your story too.
Thanks, Kimmy! ((hugs))
Nice story Amanda! I can completely relate to having those moments of remembrance, whether full of fondness or regret. It seems as if somehow these past couple of years have brought a lot of us to place of great need and also thankfulness. I am very grateful for the other artists and writers out there who always make me feel as if I am not alone. You are surely one of them. Let’s toast to our new year full of all the time to do what we want and make our dreams come true! Cheers to you!
I’ll toast to that! 😀