The Sacredness of Sketching

By Carol Woolum Roberts

sacred, the power, being, or realm understood by religious persons to be at the core of existence and to have a transformative effect on their lives and destinies. Other terms, such as holy, divine, transcendent, ultimate being (or ultimate reality), mystery, and perfection (or purity) have been used for this domain. 

On Tuesday we had our third Adult Day Retreat in our Grow Me a Story Garden.  This one was called Create an Art Experience.

I spent my morning sketching.  I received this cool journal from my friends Matt and Kira for my birthday.  I decided to use it as my sketching journal.

For about 2 ½ hours I sat in different places in my garden and sketched pictures of what I saw.

It was a very sacred time.  It had a transformative effect on my outlook that morning.

I sat in a chair, pencil in hand, journal on my lap, and I looked at the big patch of bee balm in one part of my garden.

I looked at the beautiful red color of the petals.

I watched as a green-breasted hummingbird returned again and again to drink from the middle of the flowers.

Twirling seed pods occasionally dropped from the Linden tree above the bee balm.

Bees swarmed around the flowers, along with other winged creatures.

As I looked at this scene, I noticed how the stems of the flowers bent and curved in different ways.

I noticed the fence in the background.

There is a black metal barrier keeping the bee balm upright.

Across the path is a fireplace screen from my friend’s grandparents’ house.

I took my pencil and started seeing the shape of the petals, the angles of the stems, the positions of the leaves.

It was an exercise in being aware.

It was a time to be observant.

My only thing to do at this moment in time was to look at the bee balm and draw what I saw.

It was a special moment, a holy moment, a sacred moment.

It was a Creative Rendezvous that lasted six hours.

Time had no hold on me this sacred day.

My soul and spirit needed this day of playing, creating, being quiet, observing.

It was a sacred gift from the Creator.

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Have you had any sacred moments lately?  We would love to hear about them.

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