Remembering Iris

Hey there blogging friends! Hope everyone is well.

Today I have an art journal spread to share, created in my word play journal.

 My spread is an homage to a very dear lifelong friend who passed from cancer just a few weeks ago.  Her first name was Iris and her middle name was Susan. She was a beautiful brown-eyed blonde who became a botanist and worked in pharmaceuticals before marrying her husband. Then she went back to school, became a licensed therapist for a while, back to school again and became a licensed clinical psychologist. I met her when I was 24 and used her for some therapy the very first year she was in practice.  We ended up becoming friends. She was 10 years older than me and very shy and reserved. We kept in touch over the years and had annual lunch dates for decades. Then her husband became ill and I saw less and less of her. After he died, she retired and in November 2019 we began corresponding again, most recently helping me with my personal boundaries, until she went into hospice care for her own illness. She said I always fascinated her because I was always interested in why I thought or did certain things, that a good mantra/credo for me was the Greek aphorism 'Know Thyself ', which I've used all my adult life.  I will always treasure knowing her. Next to my Honey and my Dad, she was one of the biggest positive influences in my life and she will be forever missed. 

The left hand side of the spread references her childhood nickname given her by her dad that is a play on words. Her family always called her Susan, but when she got older she decided to go by Iris. She was the first married woman I knew personally who kept her maiden name throughout her life. The woman in the photo looks a lot like her. I imagine Iris standing on the land where she and her husband built their dream home with an upstairs loft studio and wraparound deck for her home office. I'll never forget how beautiful and peaceful it was to go there for my sessions and then later to visit. Oh, and Brown-eyed Susans were among her most favorite flowers (and what her dad called her), so I had to use this photo.

The right hand side references one of her basic life philosophies. She loved Leonard Cohen. Even back in 1980 she had his music playing softly on the stereo at our sessions. One of her strong beliefs was that we are all broken but we can all mend ourselves if we try. So this is why I chose this Cohen quote, which are lyrics from his song, Anthem, because his words are what she believed. I chose greenery to be in the spread because she'd been a botanist and gardening was her therapy. Her backyard was gorgeous, with a huge holm oak tree and tons of shade-loving plants under its canopy. 

This spread is very simple, just the magazine photos, some washi tapes and sentiments I created in PSE and printed on bright yellow paper. But I have printed out this blog post and will keep it in the spread with plans to include her in a scrapbook I have of important people in my life. This was created to get the memory saved while I continue to fully process her passing. 

😌💖😌

Thanks for visiting and double thanks if you read through to the end. 

Have a good week!

XOX

MY CHALLENGE PLAYLIST:

Art Journal Journey Challenge: Use a Photo

Mix It Up Challenge #63 with Opt. No Stamps/Digis

Classic Design Challenge #1 Jan. 2023

Sparkles Monthly Challenge #160: Friendship

APTS AG Challenge #202301

Pearly Sparkles Challenge #80: No Designer Paper

Crafty Calendar January Challenge: Add a Sentiment

Creative Fingers Challenge #246