From Harlem to Tel Aviv to Omaha

Study of Zebra eye area

4" x 4"

Watercolor

Not only is the plant life around here full of sprouting activity,so also is the cultural life around Omaha.  What a diverse and full week so far, and the week is not over yet!  Sunday night I had the privilege to enjoy the Harlem String Quartet in performance at my church, Dundee Presbyterian.  As usual I was there in the third row, center aisle to sketch away while listening to this grammy award winning group.  Here are the sketch portraits along with the musicians' autographs.  They took pictures of their portraits on their cell phones so they could each have a copy.

And here's a group photo:

Enjoy a few moments of their fabulous skill on this video:

Leaving Harlem in New York City, our next stop finds us in touch with Israel to hear best-selling author, columnist, and journalist Ari Shavit.  

The former Israeli paratrooper gave some perspective on what the Israelis are thinking about the Mideast crisis, U.S.-Israeli relations, and some possible roads to peace in that region.  The lecture was sponsored by the Sokolof Family Foundation and the University of Nebraska-Omaha Schwab Center.  It was held in the new beautiful Temple Israel here in Omaha. 

Have I lost you yet?  The last stop after Israel brings us back for safe landing right in our own backyard here in Omaha.  Er....make that the neighbor's yard.  I really have enjoyed their tulips lined up against the colorful brick wall around their yard.  So I captured their beauty the other day in this little pastel study:

However I think there's more than twolips...I count nineteenlips!  Well, on to the next stop tonight which brings a performance by my nephew Josh in a Loony Tunes version of Romeo and Juliet, and if that's not enough ...you still might be able to catch a lute recital tonight at University of Nebraska-Omaha in honor of Shakespeare Day, the day the famous playwrite was born AND died.  

That wraps things up for this blog post!  Wherever you are, I hope that you enjoy the richness and depth of living life to the full....whether it is in the warm soil of your garden or in the pages of a stimulating book or breathing the fresh air on a jog down the country road.  And don't forget to be thankful that you are alive...and able to do what you do that feeds your soul!

Be brave and courageous!