Reflection: Springfield Eucharistic Congress
Eight months ago, as I stood at the kitchen counter swaying a baby to sleep while simultaneously attempting to paint, I made a pretty big decision which has impacted a lot of things. I decided place my focus more on Catholic Sacred Art and scale back on commissions that did not fit within this sphere. As you can imagine…it did not go over well at first. A lot of people unfollowed me and requests for commissions slowed to a halt. Around that same time, I decided to quit almost all of social media as it was really harming my prayer life (and simultaneously my painting). Maybe not the best “business move” considering I don’t live in a heavily-saturated-Catholic-area, but I knew that if I wanted to continue painting throughout the ups and downs of motherhood, whatever I was painting needed to strengthen my prayer life as well.
A few things have kept flickering through my mind these past few months as I continued painting among “cricket chirps,” if you will:
That simple little prayer on the bottom of the Divine Mercy image, “Jesus, I trust in You.”
The grandpa from Where the Red Fern Grows telling Billy that if he really wants those hound dogs, then in addition to prayer, he’s going to have to “meet God half-way.”
And the realization that even the crickets sing of God’s glory…so lean into those “cricket chirps” ;)
Anyways, it’s been quite a few months of painting Sacred Art in the early mornings without seeing much come of it from a worldly standpoint. And I’m honestly glad things moved at a snail pace since it truly helped me put my focus on the “why” and “Who” behind my art.
I really don’t think the beauty of my decision to primarily do Sacred Art truly hit me until I set up a booth at the Diocese of Springfield Eucharistic Congress this past month. It was a wonderful day talking with wonderful people. But one event in particular stands out in my mind:
After purchasing one of my Sacred Heart of Jesus art prints, one kind man immediately turned around and asked a nearby priest to bless it.
I was incredibly shocked and had a hard time holding back tears.
It can be difficult for me to see my work as “Sacred Art” since I often create these paintings among what I’m sure looks like utter chaos. I mostly paint while my kiddos are sleeping, but I’m still met with MANY interruptions from children who need help going back to sleep, using the bathroom, etc.
Occasionally the early risers watch me paint while eating their breakfast in my art room, asking me question after question such as,
“Can I have a washrag?”
“Are narwhals real?”
“Mommy, what does ‘fossilize’ mean?”
Definitely not the kind of questions I’m personally seeking answers to while trying to paint the Sacred Heart of Jesus…
Life with Littles is lovely , and I wouldn’t trade these moments for anything, but I’m often left wondering if my art is actually able to bring glory to God when I have cheerios thrown all about my feet as I try to paint.
So, when someone asked to have one of my prints blessed?
Well, I’m still trying to unpack that, but one thing is for sure: I think I made the right move switching over to Sacred Art. I had a person refer to this as “ministry” the other day, which equally shocked me. “Is that what this is? Am I capable of handling something like that without messing it up in some way?”
I guess we’ll find out. (please pray for me!)
Anyway, God’s timing is perfect. I have no explanation as to what has happened this past month, but after months of only hearing those lovely “cricket chirps” I now have my work cut out for me. I somehow received several commissions all within the course of a few days from different parts of the country and one from the other side of the world. Looks like Grandpa from Where the Red Fern Grows was right…. [*insert more tears here]
I’ve only ever wanted to be a Catholic Artist from the moment I learned how to paint with oils 13 years ago, and regret that it took me so long to plunge into this head-first. Please pray for me that I may only seek to give God glory with my paintbrushes.
Peace to you and yours!
Haley
