Dear Daddy, You are my inspiration
I hope you know how proud I am to be your daughter.

January 15th, 2008: My daddy died last night at 10:37. The last thing that he saw may have been my face the night before. The last thing that he tasted was the sweet juice of a Clementine on a hospital swab. As he took his last breath, “Peace in the Valley” by Tennessee Ernie Ford ended and “Nearer my God to Thee” began. The only ones in the room at St Francis Hospital were Lynn and I on each side of his bed, and Joshua, Tiffany, and Gary. Jim had just stepped out of the room. I saw the life leave my Daddy’s face. I felt the last beat of his heart, the last faint quiver in his elbow and neck as that sweet heart cease to sustain the pressure required for circulation…I wish that I could have told him one last time how much I loved him, and how proud that I am to be his daughter.

9-4-2019: Hi Dad, Gary and I went with cousin Bud and his wife on a memory trip on Saturday. I had forgotten how to find the old home place, where  you grew up. The entire area, that I remember as a child, had changed so much.

Bud is in his eighties now, but he showed us the route you would have walked to school.  Bud walked the same route with your two youngest sisters, when he was in first and second grade. It had been four or five years then, since the last time you attended Norris Elementary.  I could imagine you as a young farm boy walking the little dirt road, passing a farm here and there, on your way to school. The first would have been the Littleton Farm, that was adjacent to yours. Their old cottage at the end of the of the long drive from the road is deserted now, and the land ragged and overgrown. I remember that two of your five sisters found their husbands right next door at the Littleton Farm. Single family homes are scattered here and there along the two lane highway now to the old site of Norris Elementary.  Gary measured the distant that you would have walked as best he could…and it was uphill and down, but only 1.3 miles.

As you crossed over the road that would take you to Clemson now , Bud showed us the location of the little country store, where you sold your rabbits on the way to school. (As I recall, I think Mr. H. paid you a dime a rabbit.) From the store,  the dirt road continued down through the woods, and over the railroad tracks to the school on the hill. Norris First Baptist Church graces that hill now, facing the Highway on the way to Clemson. A lot more memories, Dad, and I do want to write “Grady’s Secret.” You really were amazing.

Quotes and Thoughts, etc
These are a few of my favorite quotes, etc.
I am always looking for more that make me think or touch my heart.
yha@charter.net

“When you put all your soul into a work-all that is noble in you-you cannot fail to find a kindred soul who understands you, and you do not need a host of such spirits. Is that not all that an artist can hope for? Camille Pessarro (1830-1903)

“In a picture, those who know no words may yet read.” St Gregory (1020-1085?)

“Art, as far as it is able, follows nature, as a pupil imitates his master; thus your Art must be, as it were God’s grandchild.”  Dante (1225-1321)

“Now you of noble mind, who love the profession of painting, be guided by these basic principles; love of art, respect for it, willingness to abide by the rules, and perseverance. As soon as you can, place yourself under the guidance of a masterand remain with him for as long as possible.”  Cennino Cennini (1360-1440)

“A painter who has no doubts about his own ability will attain very little. When his work exceeds his judgment, the artist learns nothing…But when his judgment is superior to his work, he will never cease to improve unless his love of money interferes or retards his progress.   Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519)

“A mirror is a good judge for you to have. It is marvelous how every weakness in a painting is so clearly revealed in a mirror.”   Battista Albertti (1404-1472)

“A painting is the means by which an artist coveys his passions; It is the current which he puts forth which sweeps you along in his emotions.”  August Renoir (1841-1919)

“….but when I am alone, I do not have the effrontery to consider myself an artist, not in the grand old meaning of the word; Giotto, Titian, Rembrandt and Goya, they were the great painters. I am only a public clown…”    Picasso (1882-1973)

“Emulating a master to improve one’s self is not an original idea, but an age old principle…As one seeks to become more like the “Master”, he draws closer to his own personal best.”-  YHA

“It is in the museum that one learns to paint.”  Renoir (1841-1919)

“Fine Art is that in which the hand, the head and the heart go together.”  John Ruskin

“…the majority of the world’s greatest museums (the Prado in Madrid, the Louve in Pais, and the National gallery in London, for example) were founded for the express purpose of providing artist with the means to learn from the great masters. Today art educators tend to smile at this approach, and yet the study of the old masters is still the easiest and most profitable way to train a painter’s eye and hand.”Lester Cooke– Former Curator, National  Gallery  of Art -(1916-1973)

“Most old masters took enormous care in their underdrawing and painting…They knew that by building a strong foundation, much time would be saved at a later stage.”Eric Hebron (1934-1996)

“One who accepts the light of praise is always subject to clouds of criticism…I am still basically a hermit artist who has ventured out only temporarily from the shelter of her cave…You and others have made the trip worthwhile!!!”   Thanks,  “yha”

“Passion for art is one of the main factors…time to learn is the other…If you have the love in your heart and a determination to learn, your hands can achieve far more than you ever thought possible…Like in your music, learning and practicing the disciplines of art is not confining , but freeing. Of course, you should never let anything interfere with the love and care of the two little ‘Masterpieces’ that you have already created; however,  if you evaluate how you spend your time, you should be able to find time for art also…even little steps are progress toward a destination, so I would say “enjoy the journey”!   Best Wishes. “yha”

“So many paintings in the gallery of my imagination…Never enough time!!! “yha”

 Sometimes
I don’t want to be
A grain of sand on the beach of man
I want to be
A shell or a shark’s tooth
Noticed and admired
For what I was and what I am
At other times
It’s fine to be just a grain of sand
In a sea of anonymity
C5/91 “yha”

Snowflakes
Snow flakes fall and settle down
Then melt away without a sound
Snow cannot the summer see
That too much “I” negates the we.
-unknown-

Falling in Love with Gary
Beneath The Dam
A tangle web of mountain laurel
Stretched across the ground
Blossoms reaching for the sky

But it was love that flowered
When he took my hand
To guide me through
That laureled mountain side.
C2007 “yha”

Death
Death came quiet
In the night
While I was not yet sleeping
Playfully he tapped a tune
Upon my chest
And bid me leave my rest
and dance with him
He took my hand and
Raised me to my feet

Death pulled me close
And I grew weak
Life’s sweet warmth began to flow
From me to him
He pressed his lips
Against my own
And I knew it was my life
For which death longed.
It was my breath
He sought to breathe

Suddenly, I pushed
Him back and turned away
Death would leave me stiff and cold
Savoring my warmth for a moment
Then off in search of another
To warm his cold dark soul

Savoring my warmth for a moment
Leaving me stiff and cold
Off like a fickle lover
In search of another
To warm his bleak dark soul.
C 2005 “yha”

Augustine’s Lament II
(Life as a Tuna Net)
Trapped in a tuna net
Down under the sea
Trapped in a tuna net
The Dolphin and Me

Who is concerned about
The Dolphin and me
Trapped and alone and
Unable to breathe

It’s too late now for
The Dolphin and Me
It’s dark and it’s cold
Down under the sea
And we can’t breathe
Goodbye Dolphin
Goodbye Me
C2014 “yha”