36”x48" acrylic on canvas, 2024
 
A sanctuary is a safe space, a place of sacred comfort, a spiritual home. It can be a physical place or an internal space - inside a divine structure or within the chamber of the heart. A forest grove, a mountainside, the water’s edge… At a seaside service a few summers ago, a dear pastor counselor gestured to the water behind him and invited those of us present to contemplate, “Has there ever been a more magnificent sanctuary?” I select personal objects to embellish the sense of sanctuary on my own curated home altar. I have found meaningful sanctuary within the embrace of a circle of soul sisters. The elements of sanctuary are the same: light, stillness, and a welcome sense of peace. There are all too many faces and places that fill our minds with threads of thoughts towards hopelessness, despair, anguish. This piece is my vision for an inner sanctuary offering refuge from the external world with elemental suggestions of water and air, warmth and shimmering light. May we as a collective enter a space of unconditional friendliness and sincere lovingkindness towards ourselves and all those we encounter.