Wednesday, May 24, 2023

The state of play

It’s been a busy time, with preparations for another refugee hospitality day….cooking, preparing craft materials, picking flowers, last minute arrangements, worrying if everything will go OK, etc etc.

The day itself was wonderful for all concerned - visitors and hosts - but I was so exhausted I didn’t get up till 11.30 the following day, and was back in bed for a nap at 2.30. I feel as though I have aged 3 years since last summer. I’ve long thought aging goes in jumps, not gradually. 

But who cares? I love May. I love this long stretch of fine sunny days. I love living at Hepworth Towers. I’m in heaven this week. I think back to the misery of this year’s January and wonder at the extremes of the weather and of my related moods. But I recognise, again, that the rain is what gives us this lush and beautiful countryside. I would not swap Derbyshire for Colorado, no matter how blue the sky is there, no matter how many days of sunshine they get a year (300?), no matter how much I love certain specific inhabitants.


The back garden

Our lane


Our lane




The fields adjoining our lane


I sold two paintings yesterday to an old friend and I’m feeling a bit weird about it. I wasn’t expecting anyone to like the little one she bought so I hadn’t previously thought about how much I liked it. I’m going to have to think very carefully about each and every one of my pictures before my exhibition to make sure I don’t sell something and then regret it. In the meantime I have red dots stuck on the ones she’s bought, as she insisted on leaving them for the exhibition. Gosh, it all feels very real now.

I’m going to go for a bike ride this morning and think it all over. 


The Trail


Fields below our house




8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lovely happy post. Great photos, I too love the month of May, how could you not?!
Wish I was around to come to your exhibition,. Good Luck for it, I'll enjoy reading about it on here. Sally ☀️😎

Sue Hepworth said...

Thanks, Sally. It’s a shame you can’t come. It would have been nice to meet you. 😊

marmee said...

Sue .. was proposing the photo of the window view for a painting. The English country side in spring is so beautiful!

Anonymous said...

It is comforting and exhilarating to read how much you are enjoying life in May. I agree that it seems we age in ways other than day by day. Circumstances especially illness and troubles do play their part.
Your exhibition is off to a great start with red dotted artworks already. I am another who would love so much to be there
To hear the chat and to enjoy the atmosphere and feel so proud for you
Incidentally, I am often amused/intrigued by how good the weather is in so many UK shows, when we all know that is not really the case very often Hiw else do you have those beautiful green scenes?
Ana

Sue Hepworth said...

It’s lovely to hear from you, Ana. Thank you for your encouragement.
It’s a shame Australia is so far away! I don’t suppose I will ever get to meet you, let alone have you see our lane and my paintings for real.

Sue Hepworth said...

Yes, Marmee, the English countryside in May is unsurpassable.

Anonymous said...

We went to wales for the weekend recently and all the way there and back I thought of you and Derbyshire because of the superabundance of may blossom and cow parsley I saw on the journey. It appears to be particularly superb this year. So glad you were able to make more wonderful memories in Boulder. Have picked 3 sweet peas, how are yours getting on? How exciting about your exhibition. My (undiagnosed) other half is getting more batty as he ages - I wonder if any research has been done on autism and aging. Love Jenetta
*I do not mean batty, hes just getting more of what he was before, more deeply absorbed, more overthinking, more un confident, more thrown by change

Sue Hepworth said...

Hello Jenetta! Yes, I think the cow parsley and the May blossom are stupendous this year - particularly the cow parsley.
And as far as aging goes, I think we all become more and more like ourselves, i.e. our significant characteristics become more exaggerated as we age.