dotty seiter: now playing
diary of an artist at work

Joy and Comfort, Comfort and Joy

decenber 21; unbroken thread

twinkle lights festoon
our bare-branched

backyard pussywillow:
this year’s proxy
for that which
elicited
my tiny gasp
of wonder
as a child,

in my pj’s,
seeing with wide eyes
the indoor evergreen
at 9 waverly with its
lights in primary colors,
its sparkly tinsel heavily

draped, and
my name in glitter

on a shiny ornament.

decades of decembers later,
last thing before bed
each night,
first thing upon waking
each morning, both
house and sky winter dark,
i look out to the pussywillow.
each time,
the tiny inner gasp.

dotty seiter

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The Waters Above, the Waters Below
4 x 6″; watercolor, ink, pastel pencil, and watersoluble pastel on paper
neurographic drawing
2026

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Notes about poem and art:
• “unbroken” is a poem of gratitude for all that twinkles, all that sparks awe.
the waters above, the waters below is a painting of gratitude for all that comforts, all that soothes.



6 responses to “Joy and Comfort, Comfort and Joy”

  1. Beautiful poem describing childhood memories with present tense rituals. The connection of “my tiny gasp of wonder as a child” to “each time the tiny inner gasp” as an adult!

    The color transitions are marvelous and really love the black shapes surrounding the shapes. Like the contrasts of the more plain shapes above and the intricate shapes below with you line work!

    Like

  2. Carol, thanks for your feedback. I’m just now realizing as I sit to write that an unplanned coincidence took place with our twinkle lights and this post. I began drafting this poem weeks ago, only recently coming back to it and wanting to schedule its appearance before winter melted away. Accordingly, I finished tinkering with it maybe 10 or more days ago and scheduled it. Independent of the poem’s life, Dave and I decided to take down the twinkle lights before nightfall on the first day of daylight savings time (yesterday). The posting of my poem feels like a fitting salute to this winter’s tenure of the lights : )

    I enjoyed working on this neurographic piece. Love that you explicitly commented on the color transitions, the black shapes surrounding the shapes, and the contrasts of the more plain shapes above, more intricate shapes below—all aspects of this piece where I directed conscious attention!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Joyful Puttering Avatar
    Joyful Puttering

    Comfort and Joy! Yes and Yes!

    When my sister-in-law retired….she proclaimed comfort and joy as her new motto.

    Your poem is just a delight! Your childhood memory paired with your nightly before bed ritual indeed sparks awe!

    The soothing rocks above and below the water are magical….with colors, lines and shadows in all the right places.

    Thank you for this comforting and joyful post to start my day!

    Like

    1. What a great motto you sister-in-law established when she retired! As I mentioned in my comment to Carol above, we just took down our pussywillow twinkle lights yesterday. Dave was dragging his heels a bit, not wanting to let go, but I insisted—part of the magic with these particular lights is that they embrace one particular stretch of time only and then they are tucked away, safeguarding and indeed ensuring the feeling of magic for their next tour of awe.

      The feeling of the flow of waters was comforting and joyful as I drew the lines, made the many decisions, painted the colors, added shadows, added, subtracted, embellised, defined, and refined The Waters. Thank you for your feedback, MaryAnn.

      Like

  4. The poem, the art – so perfect for these times, such a reminder of the little sources of awe all around us. The sparkle and twinkle of life! Shining through the waters above down to the waters below. xoxo

    Like

    1. Thank you, Lola! So many little sources of awe all around us. I am being as intentional as I can these days about being attentional.

      Like

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My Story

In 2014, I grab an unexpected opportunity to paint.

To make art.

I get hooked.

In 2015 I start a blog—a diary of my life as an artist.

I post my paintings and their stories. The good, the bad, the ugly.

My compass points: bust through fear, be playful, get messy, trust my gut.

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