Celebrating Creativity

Amy's marvelous watercolor
 - the boy in the middle grew up to be her husband

Last Thursday night, our Pickering Ward Relief Society had a lovely evening showcasing some real talented ladies in our congregation.  I had been looking forward to this evening ever since I heard it advertised.  However, as often happens, I got tied up at work and barely made the last 10 minutes.

Still, I was able to see the displays and talk to people, and take lots of pictures which worked out great.

We have some wonderful talents among the sisters in our Ward (congregation)!

Ashleigh gave a presentation on photography

The Force is strong with this one!

I love this little boy - the light saber is bigger than he is, and  the beard just makes this picture even better!

The young Jedi warriors using their powers for good

My photos of Ashleigh's photos - that sounds strange! - don't do them justice at all.  They were beautiful.

Our Relief Society President, Laurel (center), her daughter Jessica (holding grandson Noah) , and Relief Society Counselor Janette (right)

Jessica's children's book illustration 

I had no idea that Jessica painted.  Her delightful primitifs were such fun to see. They have actually been published in her brother's children's book.

Our Relief Society

I know it doesn't seem like a huge turn-out for this event, but we have a small ward, and a tiny Relief Society, so it's actually not bad!  We have a couple of other artists in the Ward, who weren't featured in this evening's program, including Deonne (in the white sweater).  Caroline's husband Carlos also is a talented artist.  (Caroline is the blonde in the middle of the row.)

Amy's watercolor work in progress

I've always admired people who can do watercolors.  I've always dabbled in acrylics because I'm a mess when I paint, and invariably end up with it all over me.  I also seem especially to make a mess of watercolors.  I get the paper too wet, the paint colors get muddy - again, I'm a mess.  So, when I see pristine work such as this, it really delights my eye.

I'm a huge fan of Amy's work (see the first piece of this post).  I think she needs to do more! I'm so thrilled to see her working on this new piece (above).

I understand Amy did a presentation on how to work with watercolors before I arrived, which I would have loved to have attended.

Photography

I did catch a bit of Ashleigh's presentation on photography, though.  I love her photos of her boys.  I also love these photos of the babies.

We learned the tricks of how to take these kind of pictures
 without hurting the newborn!

What a fun evening.  The theme of the program was from Timothy:  Neglect Not the Gift That Is In Thee.  Not a bad thing to remember.  Everyone has gifts and talents that enrich our lives and make the world brighter.

Perhaps "Neglect Not the Gift That Is In Thee" is a good idea for a goal this year.

What do you think?

What gifts have you been given by our Heavenly Father?  How might the further expression of that gift or gifts make your life happier and more fulfilled?