2020 Reflections

Dear friends family and followers,

First, thank you so much for being here. Without your support Stray Goose Studio would not have made it through 2020. Simple as that. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Second. In addition to supporting me as an artist and the values embedded in the work itself (ethical sourcing materials sustainable packaging… more detail is available on my website!) you have enabled me to directly support social causes as well—through the donation of my artwork for auctions, cash donations and donations of my time.

I want to take a moment to shout out the organizations we were able to lift up that little extra bit! Auction donations included: Alaska Sea Life Center, Prince William Sound Science Center, Flip the Senate. Monthly Cash donations included: Fair Fight, The Bail Project, BLM, The Great Unlearn as well as individual donations to several others. Donation of my time was spent writing letters to voters through the organization Vote Forward as well as to our elected officials in support of accountability, human rights and defense of our planet.

I want to celebrate all of this with you because it is so, so easy (at least for me) to get buried in the mire of all that is still ahead before we get to summit Mount Manifested Desires if we get too in our lifetimes at all. While it is important to understand we have so far to go and to keep climbing—it’s also important to pace, to breathe and even to rest. Today I’m feeling the need to take a moment to pause and wipe the sweat, let my heart rate come down a few beats and to turn around and look at the path winding down behind me. Progress, real progress has been made and it deserves a moment of acknowledgment, reflection even satisfaction!

I don’t know about you but I love backpacking especially multi-day trips in mountainous terrain. Within that context when, I’m heaving my way uphill, towards the third or fourth “false” summit on my way to the high point, I don’t see the lower points on the trail as lowly at all. Instead they are part of the sense of accomplishment the whole adventure brings. For myself I would like to try to apply this kind of thinking to working towards social change. There is beauty here where we are even in our tiredness, even in our pain, even in the unevenness, the rocky expenses, the rain, snow or heat. There is value and beauty and joy and accomplishment and purpose here. All of this has been meaningful work.

If you need that reminder today, like I do, please take a minute to catch your breath. You’ve done so much. You’re allowed to care for yourself on your way up this thing! And thank you, thank you for all of your efforts so far!

With love, Libby