Not a classical Virtue, but based on observing my young son with our aging family cat. It’s how I hope we’ll care for all the earth’s creatures.
———–
Sorry for the absence over the weekend. We lost our dear cat Isabel after several weeks of vet visits, a hospitalization last weekend, and a sudden turn for the worse on Thursday.
Watching my son comfort Isabel in her dying hours reminded me of this painting of Adrian and Pepper, the gentleness of spirit that connects boy and cat.
We adopted Isabel 14 years ago when she was just an oddball kitten. In those early days, she used to snarl like a dog as she tugged on toys. Back then both she and her sister Jasmine were small enough to fit in the palm of my hand at the same time, so as you can imagine her displays of fierceness and spunk were quite adorable.
Isabel was a constant presence in our house for so many years. It seems odd to lay down at night and not hear her greetings. As she approached from the foot of the bed, she was always anxious for permission to curl up beside me. She was the sweetest, gentlest cat I’ve ever known. We miss her terribly.
I actually took time to sit and just draw a bit today and yesterday because it’s been a long time. It was nice. Tried to minimize my use of the eraser.
A bobcat and a coyote from the university’s vertebrate collection.
Besides practicing environments with Photoshop brushes, I also wanted to expand beyond human busts to more of the whole body. So here’s some more tests.
Truth be told when I hurt my hand years ago I stopped drawing as much and I felt like my skills went down a lot. Now that I’ve been doing physical therapy exercises and can afford to draw more, I’m really excited to practice lots and get my skill level back up 🙂
PiraticOctopus 