Deciding to include an offering alongside the leaves, I drew out a drop-shaped template and began tracing around bits of macro photography. As I waxed, carved, colored, and sculpted, I pondered how this rain drop shape also symbolizes teardrops— no accident, I am sure, during this time in our world which has brought much grief. I thought about how both tears and rain are comprised of water— tears, releasing pain (and sometimes, joy), and rain, cleansing and enabling growth and renewal. As these drops also resemble blown-glass ornaments, sentimental tokens of memories held dear, it occurred to me that all three are interrelated— inseparable in the spectrum of life experience. My dear friend pointed out that raindrops connect earth and sky— insightful that links to the energy and life cycle embodied in the leaves. As you hold these drops in your mind and hands, they will convey meaning that is unique to you, symbolizing how each of us are drops in the same ocean.

Created in the same manner as the encaustic leaves, they began with macro photography that became abstracted as each was cut from a larger image, broadening the perspective of individuation from a whole. Printed onto textile and layered repeatedly with wax, they were cut, carved, colored, and sculpted into simple pure form, suspended from waxed linen thread. They may be hung from a small nice on a wall or from branches or a tree. Like any artwork, they should not be placed in direct sunlight. Enjoy!