Blog illustrations are sequential
start-to-finish photos of my most recent large 17x25 watercolor “The Power and
the Grace” - rowing friends, Ashley and Kendall, who I photographed during a training session back in August on Great Hosmer Pond
in Craftsbury, Vermont.
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| "The Power and the Grace" 17x25 watercolor by Elise, 2017, available |
This piece required enormous focus and
energy. I am still recovering from the effort. I hope you will enjoy the
metamorphosis journey, how a blank piece of 300 lb. 100% cotton Arches cold press
paper slowly turned into a clear visual message, telling a story.
I've wanted to write a Sports blog for awhile now and this painting illustrates it nicely, so it's time.
I've wanted to write a Sports blog for awhile now and this painting illustrates it nicely, so it's time.
Movement and Balance
It's taken me years to comprehend why I
love movement so much.
According to the Boston Trauma Center (I
heard this fact on an online webinar), it used to be thought talking was
the only way to help traumatized people, hence the advent of couches and
therapists. But now people who study the body understand touch and movement
also help heal trauma.
ADHD (which I don't have) can be a sign
of the microbiome (intestines, digestion) needing work. It can be overcome by
changing your diet.
Not being able to sit still can also be a
sign of PTSD, being in “fight and flight”... I know this was probably true of
me, years ago. As a child I was always moving, going places. Sitting still wasn’t
something I enjoyed doing.
Painting can be a sedentary profession,
if you don’t learn to stand up while you paint. Being in front of a desk
four-five days each week takes discipline in any profession. I’ve now trained
myself to sit very, very still for hours at a time. This is not healthy for the body or eyes!
Because of my work I MUST take time to
stretch and move. I sometimes accomplish this less than more, but I keep at it.
It's said you give to the world what you
need most. At the moment, I am in need of encouragement to get outside.
Feeling Your Body
Being sensitive to yourself, learning to
control and feel what’s going on in your body is important. Knowing what and
when your body needs to eat and also when to exercise or rest is a very
important area of health. Sometimes I drag myself outside. Other times, I just
rest.
My many experiences with serious injury
and partial paralysis have taught me playing any sport is a very special
privilege, not to be taken for granted.
My parents taught my siblings and I to
try new things, to love to learn. We are grateful for the opportunities and the
mindset of “I can” they gave us.
May my sporting tales encourage you to
try out a new area of balance and movement!
Making Movement a Priority Yet Also
Learning to Play
For years I've kept track of how I invest time each day, including painting hours, when I practice guitar or piano,
and also for tracking exercise.
My goal is to spend time seriously moving
at least eleven days each month. And there has to be a significant
amount of effort for me to count it as exercise. This is a minimum, some months
I am much more active.
“Going on vacation” used to be a term which
meant, for me, “I get to invest four hours a day exercising”. I loved this
freedom when time and strength allowed, but sometimes I overdid it.
I remember doing the entire cliff walk in
Newport, Rhode Island one winter, in cold weather, exhausting myself.
In San Juan, Puerto Rico “on vacation” I
swam in the ocean twice a day, doing laps. I loved it, but also realized later what a workaholic I was. Sometimes it would be best just to stop working and play in the waves...
Curiosity may Kill the Cat but it Can
Educate the Mind
Growing up, my parents bought a Sunday
newspaper most weeks. My older sister’s favorite sections were the comics and
arts & entertainment. But I was interested in reading the Sports section
first. I didn't care too much about big team sports like football, baseball and
basketball, I liked reading about individual sports.
We didn't have a television in our home
for most of our childhood, but for three weeks, winter and summer, every four
years, my parents would rent a TV so we could watch the Olympic Games. I guess
this chance to see races around the world really influenced me, for
today I love sporting events of all kinds!
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| Detail - Kendall |
And winning races isn't the whole point
of learning to play sports – it's more about challenging yourself to
grow stronger, to take part.
Perhaps too many people “sit on the
sidelines” in all areas of life today.
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| Detail of Kendall's face |
Being a Child
Children don't have to be told to
exercise. They do it naturally. My first experiences with snow sports came as a
child, sledding in little red sleds and runner sleds – Flexible Flyers – which
were good on an icy crust.
Then my parents got us ice skates and I
remember holding my daddy's hands, trying to skate between his legs when I was
around three. I took only a few lessons over the years, for skating lessons
were costly, but I still ice-skate whenever I have the opportunity. It's such a
beautiful feeling, to float on ice. I really love to play with my edges.
When I was five my dad taught me to do
flips on an indoor gym trampoline, which subsequently led to my flipping
(disobediently) on my bed at home. This was before my serious neck injury at eight.
We played co-ed soccer at recess in
school, and by age nine, I could keep up with the running speed of the boys in
fifth grade.
I learned to swim, a little bit. My dad
taught me side-stroke. And we all went to Jones Beach to enjoy being in the
waves when we visited family.
We had our little bikes and roller-skates
as children. We also had a tether-ball; badminton rackets and net; and bats,
balls, and gloves to play softball.
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| Detail |
My mom taught us to play croquet and sometimes we went bowling. Once in great while we played miniature golf with our
grandparents, too.
My mother's old Pogo stick kept us busy,
bouncing. I got up to 1,000 bounces one time. If kickball is considered a
sport, we participated in that activity, too.
We climbed trees and hung out of them. We
fell out of them, too. We also went on long mountain-climbing hikes in the
wilderness as a family and did tent camping, in summertime.
My dad taught me to fish when I was six,
which I suppose is a sport…not a very active one unless you are traveling up a
stream bed looking for trout.
We were given the privilege of learning
cross-country skiing at an early age. I clearly remember being with my dad at
age seven, when I first got the kick and glide rhythm. “You've got it, you've
got it!” he told me.
My mom was able to find us two little Shetland-type
ponies, when my sister and I were ten and eleven. We called them Love and Joy.
Those ponies gave us a great deal of practice in taking daily responsibility,
and we learned to ride and drive them. I fell off my pony, Joy, a lot.
But I would get back on her and try again. I studied horsemanship, reading lots
of books on equitation, and my riding skills improved. I trained our mare,
Corrie, for a 25-mile trail ride once.
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| Detail |
Growing Up in the Water
As I got older, my dad saw my ability on
a diving board and began to coach me. We joined a summer swim team. I swam and
also represented the diving team.
My dad would stand next to the board and
coach me on how to do a 1-1/2 forward flip during practices. “Dad, I don't
think I can do it,” I'd tell him. “I'll stand right here and watch you do it,”
he encouraged me.
I would try. I loved bouncing on the board, but the excruciating pain of landing wrong, head down, with pinched nerves in my neck was horrible. I would wonder if I was paralyzed and then I'd get out and do the same thing again. I didn't complain too much, I just locked it up and ignored the pain. I didn't know this kind of pain wasn't normal, at the time I figured I was pretty normal.
I would try. I loved bouncing on the board, but the excruciating pain of landing wrong, head down, with pinched nerves in my neck was horrible. I would wonder if I was paralyzed and then I'd get out and do the same thing again. I didn't complain too much, I just locked it up and ignored the pain. I didn't know this kind of pain wasn't normal, at the time I figured I was pretty normal.
One of my favorite dives was a forward
flip in full position, with a half twist. I did just about everything I could
to land feet first, due to my increasingly painful neck issues.
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| Detail |
After my dad left, I continued to try to
dive, but in losing him, I felt I'd lost my nerve. I became afraid of hitting
the board and inward dives were too scary.
We joined a winter swim team for four
years, where we all really learned to swim. Back, Breast, Butter, Free.
I am so grateful for the ability to be comfortable in the water today. It
really helped me in learning to row this past summer, because I wasn't afraid
of tipping the boat, which I managed to do quite often!
I swam through a lot of pain during those
four years, emotionally and physically, but swimming has remained one of my
favorite things to do.
A few years ago I waited in line to take
my turn at a beautiful bouncy diving board at a New Jersey pool. Doing back flips takes courage at first, but once you get the feel of it, it's hard to stop. They’re
fun at any age!
I am becoming more cautious about taking physical risks these days. I didn't flip off the rocks into Lake Champlain this summer, I just jumped =\ I had recently injured myself...otherwise I'd have flipped!
Variety is the Spice of Life
When we were little, we made ourselves
archery bows, using bendable branches and string, and we had straight sticks
for arrows. We spent hours outside, playing.
We took the local hunter-safety course
and learned how to shoot and clean a
rifle. I liked aiming and hitting the targets, but don't really enjoy the loud
noise, shooting. In New Zealand, I did some shotgun firing at clay pigeons.
We played only a little basketball. Aunt
Elise became a PIG, a HORSE and a loser at one-on-one just last weekend,
because my niece's basketball skills are getting rather good. =)
At the local college on summer Sunday
evenings, growing up, my family played volleyball in the sandpits. We had a net
at home for birthday parties and cookouts, too.
Playing round-robin at the Ping-pong
table in our cellar was a favorite past-time when friends came over...and we
tried to learn to play Pool (billiards), too, when we went somewhere that had a
table.
We trained and ran in the local foot
races annually, although running is NOT a sport I enjoy. Too much impact. We
also trained with the local cross-country team because we knew the coach. I
only went running with them once, if I remember correctly...
I walked eight miles to town many Sunday
mornings, to get to church early, enjoying the solitude and the woods. In our
culture, people don't use walking to get places, they just go out to exercise.
The mental mindset of “three miles is nothing” has really helped me over the last few years. I now walk this distance to read my emails and have an internet connection at a library.
The mental mindset of “three miles is nothing” has really helped me over the last few years. I now walk this distance to read my emails and have an internet connection at a library.
Mountain biking on back roads is an even
faster way to go places. I still bike a lot every summer.
Mom gave us tennis lessons at the
local university, so we came to understand TV tennis match scoring. We also
played raquetball. Tennis requires a lot more arm as well as running to the
ball, while raquetball is more about using your wrist.
My brother learned to rock climb outdoors
as well as at an indoor gym. I went rock-climbing a few times indoors and once
outdoors, roped in.
My brother also learned to golf, and he
took me once, for a round of nine holes. Someone said I was a “natural” as my
drives were long and straight, even though I needed help to see where the golf
ball went after being hit! Golfing this one time was so much fun! I can easily
understand how Golf can become addictive.
I lifted iron weights a bit, to improve my swim team times, and then later for strengthening my upper back and neck. We had daily hay bales and
water buckets to lift, too.
Loving Winter
We built a Luge run one very snowy winter
with family friends, shoveling down through three feet of snow and banking the
turns. We covered the run with water, which froze, and then we had our icy
course!
Three to four times each week, come winter,
I cross-country skied with my old 9mm three-pin bindings, back and forth on a
¼-mile track. I'd pack my track down each time it snowed. There was no one else
around, just me, the trees and the sky. As I got stronger, double-poling down
the inclines by winter's end on ice was fast and fun.
Alternately, I'd climb the hill behind
our house and set up my ski poles for gates, and go down, practicing my balance
without metal edges and with my heels free. Herring-boning up the steep hill
was a great cardio workout. My lungs worked in the cold air happily. I'd go
skiing at 7° F without the wind-chill factor, in my wool sweater and feel
perfectly warm. Sometimes we had extremely strong winds on our mountain.
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| Detail - final of Kendall's face and torso |
My mom and siblings and I finally learned to downhill ski the
one winter we all worked at a ski area. My edge control from ice-skating came
in handy and I was able to ski the black trails by the end of the year halfway
decently.
We were known as “the family” and this
winter became probably the most fun winter of my life. We rented skiis for
$1/day and I skied forty days for just $40!
I taught myself to Telemark ski too, just
on the green trails with low leather boots (not much control), getting
literally black-and-blue on both hips from falling so much. Finally, the
balance and technique came together!
Two of my siblings love to snowboard, but
I never tried to because my neck, low back and wrists have been injured too
much over the years.
I made the hard decision to stop working
for a free lift ticket the second year, in order to focus on planning my new
speaking-contest and to begin teaching children about good character. It was a
sacrifice. I have missed downhill skiing.
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| Final Detail of Kendall's face |
Experiences Around the World
The summer I worked in NYC, I bought Rollerblades,
going around Central Park many times, without any knee or arm pads. I never
fell badly, thankfully. My sister and I Roller-bladed a lot in Vancouver,
British Columbia, too.
I did fall hard twice, Rollerblading, catching
a pebble while flying along on asphalt, when I came back to Vermont...and spent
most of that summer healing my road rash and wounds.
I rode horses three times in New Zealand
– once in the Waiuku Forestry, which was heavenly. Another horse did a flying
lead change for me. Although I hadn't ridden in years, it came back
to me.
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| Final Detail of Ashley's face |
My family went snorkeling to see the fish
in the Florida Keys once, too.
There was a Pilates class in the
Hamptons. And a Zumba intro class in Maine.
Holding an exercise class on a concrete floor is not a good idea. I didn't
return after that first class due to joint pain.
Usually I tend to injure myself in
exercise classes, trying to keep up with others and do things my body isn't
ready to do. I generally find it better to just work out on my own and pace
myself.
I took a women's self-defense class a
different year in NYC, from a friend, learning a bit about martial arts, which
requires a lot of balance and body control. It was lots of fun, although I
managed to get myself injured, again.
Vermont, 2017
After twenty years of waiting, I trained
and FINALLY skied in the Craftsbury Outdoor Center's annual cross-country ski
marathon in January of 2017, winning second for my age group at the 12K
distance. I was NOT going at any real speed, but I started and I finished. I
kept telling myself to ignore everyone else, and just ski my own race.
My sister gifted me with a summer of
special joy – to learn my 38th “sport” - how to scull. I had wanted
to learn to scull for years, watching others race, but with no equipment or
suitable water around it seemed pretty improbable. Then I moved to the right
location.
Co-ordinating arms and legs with proper
back posture and the moving seat and oars took a little time for my brain to
figure out. After starting in a wide rowboat, I moved to a middle-sized boat,
and finally to a narrow racing scull in about two months time.
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| On Mt Monadnock, Vermont, October 2017 |
This past fall I hiked up Mt. Monadnock in Vermont and Mt. Cardigan in New Hampshire with an old family friend who needed someone to go along for health reasons.
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| Me on Mt. Cardigan, NH, October 2017 |
I still desire to learn to sail,
sail-board, surf, and water ski before I die. The common missing element here
is having enough water. And I'd really like to learn to ballroom dance, and
play polo - the “sport of kings”...
I'm dreaming now, but it's a nice dream!
With thanksgiving for all the good gifts
Christ brings to the Body,
I am gratefully your painting and balance-loving friend,
Elise
She girdeth her loins with strength and strengtheth her arms. ~ Proverbs 31:17
She girdeth her loins with strength and strengtheth her arms. ~ Proverbs 31:17
