Creative Jolt

Ahhhh, the great outdoors. What a great way to clean my mental house. No phone calls, no to do list, just a swept clear space to let the creative thoughts wander through and settle in.

My husband and I decided to head out last Sunday for a morning hike. Ginzee is always willing to hit the trails and the three of us headed out for a drizzly, peaceful hike.

We have had a lot rain this year with just enough sun popped in now and then. This results in foliage like I imagine the garden of Eden must have looked like. Thick, lush, green plants loom over head. Dew drips off the leaves and the colors of wild flowers peak through the screen of green. Whew, artist heaven. I stroll dreamily along filling my mind with colors and shapes.

That's when I saw it. The HUGE brown bear paw print in the mud. They were fresh, VERY fresh. After a few steps we found some scat. Also, FRESH. Clearly we were following this bruin along on the same path. We began to sing and call and carry on like people crazed with fear of a bear attack.

The above image is a creation from my friend Steve Engle. His business Animal Tracks by Steve creates these beautiful plaques from actual animal prints. This is from a grizzly print found in Kelp Bay. The prints we found weren't quite as big but not by much. This print is 6.5 inches across.

My creative moment got a bit of a jolt. I knew if Steve Engle was with us he would have pulled out his plaster kit and made art from our heart pounding moment. Then my bear moment would be sitting on someones table reminding them of the creative outdoors.