But then there comes the need for water, food, comfort, and a warm bed. I am reminded that nature provides all these things. Not in this place, this is a natural terrain. These necessities come from humans who have tamed the land.

Without a road, I could not access this place. The drive takes about one hour and it seems like only a few minutes. Once in a while there is a marvelous sunset behind us. A plowed field with even furrows and a separated two-lane highway are moments of beauty. Cultivation and culture are to be appreciated. It’s wonderful that we can take these things for granted. There is no need to speed, just to go, and the moment can overwhelm... the moment of the drive is gone and one’s thoughts are sublime. Driving can be an experience of being within one’s thoughts free from everything but being on the road.

Sitting in the Red Gallery doing my paintings is like a long drive. I paint and my mind is in the moment, at rest. To my constant surprise the clock radio comes on at 5 p.m. and it is a reminder that my day is done. Some people call these moments relaxing. I consider them moments in time not to be captured but to be allowed, like the water in the river, to flow. You cannot capture that water, only the experience of it. Such is life.