Years ago…when my kids were still kids and living at home with me. We finally lived in a house we owned…a blank canvas ready for my creative ideas to come to life!

The backyard became my own little universe…creation, if you will for me to bring into existence. I ordered trees and plants from those seed catalogs we used to get in the mail. I would draw out my whole backyard on graph paper, carefully mapping out where each tree, bush or plant would happily grow. I could see it all in my mind…color bursting, ripe fruit ready for picking…my very own Garden of Eden and grocery store right out my back door.

The kids were so eager to help. They could see mom’s vision…as we carefully planted each seed and plant. We were excited…

And then August came…the garden was as tall as me…well the weeds were. The days were 100º and I was probably pregnant. All the excitement gone…the kids were nowhere to be found, yet I would head out to my overgrown Garden of Eden and pull the weeds….and uncover the my dream…it was not what I had imagined.

It was quiet…very well could have been my only quiet place at that time in my life. No one wanted to pull weeds. But I could think here…remember here…dream here. I could talk…to God here…and he would talk to me.

It reminds me of a song I remember my mom singing…

Amongst the weeds I am reminded who I am and whose I am. My creative heart was designed by the Creator himself. No matter the task…how large or small…how seemingly unimportant or important…I was made to create.

If it’s my bare hands in the dirt…fixing another meal for my family…telling stories to my children and grandchildren or a paintbrush in hand…I am designed to create.

One day the world we have been part of creating with our lives will be revealed in all of it’s amazing glory…and it will take our breath away!

In early May I was pulling out my pots to plant flowers and seeds. I had stored a couple of them in a closed antique trunk on the porch of my studio over the winter. When I opened the lid I found to my surprise a 12 inch tall walnut tree growing inside of the trunk. No light…no water since maybe November. The seed died there in the winter in darkness…yet still came to life in the spring!

In June, my son and I went to Guatemala on our first mission trip…it will not be our last! I had the honor of bringing the seed of the Gospel of Jesus’ love to share with children who had no idea who I was and most had never heard of Jesus.

We worked in a village called Tierra Negra…black earth. About 75 families lived in this village which had no electricity and the water was brought in about once every 3 weeks. It was located on a plantation of palm trees. The residents harvested the palm oil as their means of life.

This remote village consisted of crude homes, an empty church, two small one room schools, and a very small, empty “medical clinic”. Basically a wooden shack. In spite of their lack of many things we take for granted…they were the happiest people I have ever met.

*Kaeden is picture walking out of the “medical clinic” on the right.

We came to provide the finances for and assistance in digging footings, forming and pour the concrete footings for a new clinic.

We also came to share Jesus love through songs, stories, art projects and games. Being the first North Americans to ever be in this location was hard for me to comprehend. Coming from a world of instant everything, media and travel at my fingertips was a humbling experience for us all.

When the children at the school first saw us, they watched with curiosity as we approached…ducking into the doorway as we came closer. We were still met with smiles and giggles. It didn’t take long for them to warm up to us…especially the youth in our group.

They soon knew me as KoKo (my grandma name and often referred to as “Crazy KoKo” by my husband and kids).

But for them I was Señora Coco, the coconut.

We started the first of our three days there with a story about the farmer who sowed seeds. Some of the seeds grew in good nutrient rich soil (Matthew 13). The second day, I taught them that some of the seeds became mighty trees with roots that went deep to the living water and whose branches had green leaves that never withered in drought and produced baskets and baskets of fruit. (Jeremiah 17:8) Our third and final day we talked about the fruit that is produced from the seeds…which becomes evident in our lives by the Holy Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Each day, as I shared a very simple message I was met with more and more people from the village. The children sat around my feet looking at this crazy coconut lady with golden hair going everywhere.

The women lined around the back walls some with age etched around their eyes some not any older then the girls who came with us. Their babies nursing or sleeping in small portable hammocks…which they carried on their heads!

It was amazing how a simple box of crayons given to each child was a gift beyond measure to them. Seemingly unpractical for a place of such lack…wouldn’t something else be a more sensible gift? The “older” girls who were no longer in school joined right in, helping the littles with the art projects. (Sixth grade is the last year of school) I had a moment of overwhelming joy mixed with a few tears as I was facing the wall, drawing on a paper held up. I was showing them to draw a simple line across the paper, add circles along the line for seeds and then draw squiggly lines down for roots, finishing it off with flowers blooming. As I turned around in the midst of teaching each step, I was met with all these beautiful brown eyes and brown faces watching me and following along…just like you when I teach you to paint! But oh so far away from my familiar and comfortable place. It was incredible that I had this honor…it still makes me cry as I type this! Something so simple…but so impactful!

Each day we were there more people from the village were there. Even the young men gathered in the doorways and look through the glassless window panes as we shared. By the final day, all the men who were constructing the clinic came to see and listen.

My words were translated first into Spanish and then into Q’eqchi, it was easy to lose my place as I looked into the faces of the people who were just as fascinated with me as I was with them. A few times I was overwhelmed nearly to tears with the enormity of what was happening.

What a privilege I had just sharing a simple story..a seed planted. A simple art project with a new box of crayons, some glue and tissue paper. And a few songs and games. We had an amazing interpreter who taught songs with all the actions and everyone had so much fun with the games…not just the kids!

I have no doubt, just like the seed in my pot that this seed will one day emerge into a mighty tree…with roots that grow deep…and branches that bear fruit without fail.

Darkness is not dark to God…nothing limits His purpose. He will faithfully do the rest!

No matter how unfit, uncalled, unpolished and imperfect we think we are…we all carry seeds and we plant them everywhere we go, whether we know it or not. The kind of seeds we are planting matters. We are called to plant the seeds we carry…no matter where we are.

Creating endless colors with just a few…red, blue, yellow, black and white!

When you start with a simple palette of only primary colors…your rainbow of colors are endless.

Can we count them? Probably not…say all 10 million of them? Try naming them!

So many times as I am teaching and mixing colors…my words fail me for a name that describes the color…I end up with avocado…seriously…like that’s the best I can do?!

Where my words fall short…my painting lends its voice.

Every color, every shade, every tint is a mixture of pigment, binder, solvent and additives…which creates your acrylic paints.

Pigment is what gives paint its color. Made from many different substances, some are natural and some man-made. Color mixing is definitely affected by the quality of pigments used. Cheap paints do not create vibrant colors.

Paint is created by a mixture of dry and wet ingredients bound together . As opposed to oils; acrylics are made with water as a solvent…which as evaporation happens the paint dries quickly. Temperature and humidity play a part into the speed of dry time.

Are you still with me??

Keep reading…or scrolling…because there are some videos for you below!

Let’s skip all this chemistry stuff…a class I never took…and go right to painting…to mixing…to taking our pre-created paints and playing. I never was one that enjoy the prep work…the instruction…the studying. For me it’s most often “hands on”! And yes I make lots of mistakes…have to do things over…probably took the much longer route…

This is where I feel most comfortable. Painting is learning…let’s learn together.

Are you ready try your hand at mixing beautiful colors?

I have 3 short videos for you; where I have only used 2 of the primary colors in each…showing you how amazing colors emerge from this simple palette.

By adding black and white, you will create even many more colors!

Clear your mind of expectation…then fill it with expectancy…grab your paints…one brush will do…a larger one is best (The brush I use is a Liquitex Basic #8 Bright seen HERE) and a canvas or heavy paper to paint on.

We will begin with mixing just 2 colors…Red and blue

In this video we will be mixing Yellow and Blue

And the Last color combination of Yellow and Red

My hands create the work…my eyes delight in the beauty of what happens; where creator and creation become unified. It’s a joy filled experience!

It’s becomes a taste of the delight your Heavenly Father had when He created you!