Therapy

I just finished a painting for mom, inspired by an old image of the greenhouse at Snug Harbor on Staten Island where she  served as a volunteer and gave tours for years.  I’m no professional but I’m learning as I go, it’s been a wonderful form of therapy during the pandemic, to pick up brushes again after years of ignoring the easel and creating something, whether it’s good in anyone else’s eyes or not.   That used to stop me… to think I wasn’t good enough to really pursue painting.  Art is art – and it’s so individual.  Your style is your style – we can all learn as we go and improve what we’re doing with tips and tricks and general rules of how to’s…. but never cut yourself up so that you don’t enjoy creating, whatever it is you like to do.   The world needs more of it, our souls need more of it –

Off to the frame shop it goes…   and next up on the easel –  I needed an infusion of those vivid St. John USVI colors.. so I’m going back to the island on this canvas board…

Another great form of therapy for me, for better health, body and mind.. has been the hiking I continue to pursue.  In our neck of these United States woods we have access to so many trails,  and I am grateful for the diversity.  Kai is a wonderful hiking buddy, too. These images are from Peters Woods Preserve.  Yesterday we had a wee fox cross the trail just up ahead of us.

Check out the rainbow my daughter caught in the image below…  we should have been looking for a pot of gold!

I’ll end this post with a funny ( at least to this profanity using texter) and a delicious recipe, a combination of a few flavors I love.. strawberry and lemon.  A perfect combo to remind us of sunny days ahead.

Strawberry Lemon Poppy Seed Bread
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2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbls poppy seeds
1 and 1/2 cups chopped strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 2 lemons
Glaze:
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Juice of one lemon
2 tbls milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup chopped strawberries
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9-inch-by-5-inch loaf pan with parchment.
In a large bowl, add flour, baking soda, salt, and poppy seeds. Whisk to combine.
In another bowl, add both sugars and egg; whisk to combine. Whisk in oil, buttermilk, and vanilla until smooth.
Add the chopped strawberries to the bowl with the flour and toss to combine. Gently fold in the wet ingredients.
Transfer the batter to the loaf pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the bread to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Remove from the pan and allow to cool completely. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled bread.
While the bread is baking, make the glaze by adding the powdered sugar, lemon juice, milk, and vanilla to a bowl; whisk until smooth. Add the chopped strawberries. Using the whisk, smash the strawberries into the glaze to break up, small chunks are okay
Till soon,

4 thoughts on “Therapy”

  2. Beautiful photos, art, wisdom, humor, and OMG food! all in one post. Covered all my favorite bases. I love your paintings and so wish I could paint, but my artistic bent veers down a different path and bend it does!

    You are so blessed to have so much gorgeous nature close by. I miss PA and the woods where I grew up and dreamed.

  3. Well, first of all, those paintings — both of them, but especially the glass house, really knock my socks off. Absolutely beautiful in its detail. And your hikes yield some wonderful sights. Thanks for the recipe and poem, too!

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