Assignment for artists: draw, paint, or otherwise artistically create a rendition of this as-of-yet non-existent painting that is described here:

23. And then I walked passed the antique mahogany hutch on my way to the bathroom. And I looked at the painting (we bought from the second-hand shop) that was now hanging on the wall in the small hallway near the bathroom door in our apartment.

24. The painted canvas was framed in a large, intricately carved dark wooden picture frame. The painting was a painting of a woman holding her baby. The baby was bundled up in a pink woolen blanket. And only a portion of the baby’s left side profile was discernible.

25. Only the baby’s left side rosy red cheek, and a portion of the baby’s left side portion of nose, and the baby’s closed left eye, and a small portion of the baby’s closed rosy mouth on the left side, was discernible.

26. The woman was sitting on a white wicker chair, and she was holding her baby bundled up in the soft pink woolen blanket, as though the blanket was meant to keep the baby warm. And the woman was wearing a pair of black tight fitting Gass jeans. But she wasn’t wearing any shoes. She was barefoot.

27. In the background of this picture of the woman holding her baby in her arms and sitting on the white wicker chair, was a singular background that was painted a completely smooth lavender.

28. And I couldn’t help but notice that the woman’s beautiful feet had toenails that were nicely polished with a bright red nail polish. And she was wearing a black sleeveless Evelence blouse that had six small black buttons buttoned all the way up to the top of her neck line.

29. And I stared at her slender arms and her long beautiful hands as she held the baby, and I noticed that her fingernails were nicely manicured and polished with the very same bright red nail polish that her toenails were polished with.

30. Then I looked up at her long, flowing, chestnut brown hair that hung thickly down over her shoulders. And because her eyes were hidden behind a pair of large black Rye-Pan sunglasses, I couldn’t see her eyes.

31. I then looked at her face, and I could see only parts of her face that weren’t hidden behind her large black Rye-Pan sunglasses. Yet I couldn't help but focus on her lips. Her lips were closed and quite large and puckered into a kiss going out toward the person who would be viewing the painting. And her lips were glossed over with a thick layer of hot red Garlucci lipstick.

32. Abruptly, my eyes shifted downward from the painted canvas, so I could see the title of the painting. Shop At The Shop, was the title of the painting. The title of the painting was stylistically engraved on a gold-plated metal plaque that was affixed to the bottom part of the painting’s intricately carved dark wooden picture frame.

33. I backed one or two steps away from the painting, and I said aloud to Lisa who was in the kitchen, Wow, what exactly regulates what a person does with their life?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

34. Lisa knew I was talking about the painting on the wall that was perpendicular to the bathroom door, and across from the bedroom door, and near the threshold of the living room. It was the only painting we had in the apartment. At least now she knew exactly where I was, obviously on my way to the bathroom.

35. So she said from the kitchen, I think that's where the energy of the person comes in, and the ability of the person.

36. I heard what she said, and I heard the loud squeak of the oven door opening up all the way. And I heard the sound of Lisa pulling the pan-sheet of onion rings out of the oven. Directly after that, I heard the squeak of the oven door closing, and I heard the faint sharp sound of the oven-timer being clicked off (before the alarm could actually go off).

37. I said, So you're saying that what a person does with their life is related to the energy they have? What about a person who has lots of energy and they only cook and clean all day? They're constantly using energy, right? They seem to have plenty of energy.

38. Lisa said, Well, I'm not talking about pure energy of using up calories. I'm talking about mental energy, creative energy. I'm talking about someone creating something new!

39. So with her country-style pot holder gloves on, she swung the pan-sheet of onion rings over to the kitchen countertop and dumped them into the large Denkar serving dish.

40. She thought to herself that it was a wonderful painting. She said aloud on many occasions that she loved it because it was a real painting, using real paint, and that it was in a real wooden frame. A picture says a thousand words, she said several times, referring to all paintings in general. She also said that she loved the Denkar serving dish she bought from the second-hand shop at just a fraction of the original price.

41. How many people actually create something new in their lifetime? I mean during their whole lifetime, how many people actually create something completely new? I said. And I hoped that she heard what I said as I walked into the bathroom, and I closed the bathroom door behind me.



If you'd like, click here to read the first 22 passages.