How I got here
As a single mother in this harsh economy we’ve all come to know, I found myself clawing for the surface, while the water level continued to rise. Wound tightly in survival mode, I had forgotten what it felt like to flow with creative energy. I got to a point where the screen had become my life, as I pinched funds together, without a thing to look forward to beyond managing to bring my case load down to zero before the madness of the following week.
Finally, the pain of a life in survival was greater than the reward of keeping above water. I began scheduling small doses of time for art; Time to learn and grow. I began making nature my priority again. And then, slowly yet surely life became something to look forward to once more.
When I met my partner Bob, he brought canoe tripping back into my life. Together over the last few years we have explored the Muskoka Lakes area through Algonquin Provincial Park, Killarney Provincial Park, Temagami Provincial Park, and some crown land lakes and rivers in Ontario, Canada.
These trips did something unexpected. They gave me an extended chance to reset my nervous system between the chaos. They brought back my love for photography, a profession I had been ready to let go of only a few years prior. And they inspired me to push my painting skills further, as I felt called to celebrate through art, the moments we’ve shared together with our girls in nature.
If I am remembered for anything in this life, it would be to continue to remind people to say yes to art, nature, and expression – especially, and most importantly, when the world feels like it’s caving in.
Ash xo
