I put in some good studio time today on the Paph Orchid. There are some days you are there in the studio working and nothing seems to be going right, nothing has moved the painting nearer to the day you sign it. There are other days, when you put in the same amount of time and you’ve leapt forward towards a vision. Today was one of those days.

On another note, I wanted to mention something about my large Hostas. If you look closely at the center there is an accumulation of garden debris in the center of the large leaf. If you don’t help the plant, and clean that channel you might have a problem. The architecture of this leaf allows the rain to roll towards the center and flow down into a channel on the stem, thereby delivering the water to the base of the plant and the root system. With the opening to the leaf channel clogged with debris, the water doesn’t follow this path, and the plant doesn’t benefit from the adaptations it has developed towards survival. I find it personally very satisfying to help the Hostas breathe and survive.

I began this daily journal in February, 2026 as I prepared for my solo exhibition, “Portraits From My Garden” at Locust Grove in Poughkeepsie, NY, from June 5 – September 15, 2026, my work for the group show, “Hearing Women’s Voices” at the Ceres Gallery in from June 23. to July 18, 2026, and my upcoming November 2026, solo exhibition titled, “Centering in the Midst of Chaos” in Chelsea, New York City