F is for

Before I go any further I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has taken the time to view this blog and to those who have made the effort to add a comment. I am very appreciative of all your support and words of encouragement, especially since I have been absent from blogland for so long.

Which kind of leads me into today's word - F for Faith. This was a no brainer for me. We all need to have faith in something, whether that is in ourselves, our beliefs (religious or otherwise); there has to be an anchor that holds us fast to the shore during the stormiest of seas. In times of crisis we could choose yesterday's word and take the easy route; stick our head in the sand and pretend nothing is happening. It requires a lot of faith, and trust, to meet the problem head on and deal with whatever comes.

When you look at some of the most terrible events and disasters that have happened in our world how can we have faith in anything.  Take the Holocaust, Merthyr Tydfil, Dunblane, 9/11 etc - how do the survivors live through those dreadful experiences? Their faith must have been sorely tested.

And how does faith fit into our art? We use it to express ourselves through painting, drawing, journaling etc. Something inside us tells us to keep going, to continue to be creative, to believe in what we do. 

Today's tag is quite subtle and is one of my latest creations. I wanted it to express the kind of serenity we feel when we, and others, believe in us.

I created the background by inking the whole tag with Old Paper Distress Stain. I then added Dusty Concord and Weathered Wood, drying between each application. Finally I added Picket Fence to give the washed out appearance. 

I'm not sure if you can see that I stamped very faintly in the background with one of the script stamps from Eccentric Edwardian. The cross is from Easter Traditions and the words 'you can do it' are from the Words of Inspiration set. The actual phrase is 'If you can Dream it you can do it'. I inked the stamp and then removed the ink from the words I didn't want with a baby wipe. This is a great technique if you don't want to use the whole phrase. The letter was from an alphabet set.

All the stamping was done using a Memento Elderberry inkpad.

I think that faith means having the guts, determination and spirit to carry on, even in the midst of extreme adversity. Where this faith comes from and how you harness it is another learning curve along the experience that is life. I know where mine has come from during the last year - and I will be eternally grateful.

See you tomorrow