The current events in our world are making it quite apparent, don’t you think?

The impermanent nature of all we habitually rely on.

One needs to be attentive here.

Because it seems that there are two general ways of responding - to this unsettling instability we’re facing.

On one hand we can become scared; and either suffer despair or -even worse- escape into denial, giving up to some propaganda or another (and there are plenty around feeding on that now).

Or… one can take this as an opportunity; to look straight into impermanence of our lives. Just calmly witnessing it, without worry, even suspending our own preferences for a moment, to really see things more objectively.

And, if one does that, sincerely and without blinking, much can be discovered.

We can for instance discover how much everything is really interconnected, how someone’s gain is often someone else’s loss. 

Or how nature of things is less about “me” and “you” and more resembling one everchanging experience flow, that each of us experiences a little differently depending on this and that.

And it goes much deeper that that. A lot can be learnt; and through becoming wiser, we can become less vulnerable to the unpredictable world.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not ok at all – all the craziness and damage happening around us. Yet we have very limited possibility to change that (and whatver we can we should do!). But fortunately we are deeply free to choose, if we turn these circumstances into a downfall or, through facing them with calm sincerity, we become wiser and better human beings.

The drawing itself is a true story. A scene, witnessed years ago, in a small Buddhist temple in Laos. Tropical, starry night; cozy and calm (Laos still being very unspoiled and peacefull corner of Asia back than). A makeshift carrousel has been set up for local kids, on the temple grounds - blurred shapes and lights going round and round endlessly, while the ancient Buddhas, carved into temple walls witness with umoved serenity. So casual and so timelessly evocative at once. I knew I would need to paint or draw this one day - it took a while, but I finaly did, recently. Really enjoyed going back to that night, and contemplating it again.

Looks like -after a few years of mostly painting- I will be coming back to drawingboard again. There is something nicely intimate and somehow more realxed about this medium (in conmparison to oil painting) that I currently value, and will likely be doing it more regularly again.

Another perfect moment from Asia to go along the previous post. Years later, a shanty town on the outskirts of a Malaysian town, I forgot the name of. Fascinating neibourhood, with abandoned colonial villas, derelic and run down by time, now inhabited by local, poor Hindu population. Sounds somewhat uninviting but actually I'd choose it over any other part of town without hesitation - with lush greenery covering everything, this kind of semi-outdoor, immersed arrangement and with truly connected human comunity - they shared their food and had us staying with them long into the night.

Anyway, the scene, with the young girl striding, with that awesome young confidence, in her twice-oversised sandals, through a vignete of tree canopy and makeshift outdoor kitchen. Some moments are just complete like this.