“Life is full of grief, to exactly the degree we allow ourselves to love other people.”
-Orson Scott Card
Created with Love: Ana's Story
"After my grandma died, I knew I wanted a piece of artwork in her memory. I had ZERO vision for that piece, except for the fact I wanted it to have an elephant in it. I threw this completely wild idea at my friend Rebecca (and gave her the appropriate midwestern out). I asked Rebecca if she would be willing to create something for me from the stories I shared of my grandma. To turn my love, grief, admiration, hurt, and relief into something tangible. To my surprise, she took my commission! (Even after telling her she totally didn’t have to.)
So one afternoon, in a Starbucks, I told Rebecca everything I knew about my grandma. I shared funny stories, painful stories, stories of her love, stories of her strength and triumphs, and stories of our time together. I ugly cried in that Starbucks as my sweet friend asked questions and diligently took notes. I cannot even begin to tell you how incredibly healing it was to just share about my grandma and to be heard!
In every step of the process, Rebecca made me feel so loved and supported. She truly took the time to understand my grandma and who she was to me. From the colors she chose, the type of roses sprinkled throughout, and the night sky.
The left side of the painting represents my grandma’s life in Laos with the choice of trees, foliage, and waterfalls, and right side represents her life in Michigan (peep the pines). Rebecca even included my grandma’s name, in grandma’s handwriting! ...
I was hoping that the time between receiving this piece and making this post would result in more words, but honestly I’m still in awe. I would 1000000000% recommend asking Rebecca to do this type of “grief painting” for you because words truly cannot express what it’s like to see your stories about your person through Rebecca’s eyes.
It’s been an entire year without grandma and I still miss her terribly AND my heart is less broken now. I will forever be grateful to have been loved by her."
If you are interested in requesting a similar commission, please contact me directly.
16 x 20 inches (20 x 30 cm)
Sennelier Aquarelle watercolors, gesso, and Prismacolor and Polychromos colored pencils
on Canson cold press illustration board
**Created on commission**