February 19: a Zen moment

Another MeetUp that I've been wanting to try out is a Zen book group.  I finally went with Danielle this evening.  The book is Zen Heart by Ezra something.

So, the group starts with a 15-minute meditation before reading an excerpt from the book and then continuing with discussion.  During the meditation, when I was trying to empty my mind, I kept glimpsing a flower petal.  It was pretty up close, just a single flower petal.  I came home after the group -- which I think I will go to again (I did buy the book the next day) -- chatted with Kevin for a bit, then tried to replicate the petal.

I can't really describe the colors in my mind's eye...  beige?  with some purples and pinks lightly mixed in?...  but mostly beige, and I thought it would be lovely if I tried some fading with dark and light purples around the edges.

But, my first attempt, I tried to draw the petals folding backward, and it didn't work...  I flip flop from liking the colors to not liking the colors; I think the blues are throwing it off for me.  That said, once I decided it was definitely not what I envisioned, I kept playing with colors, just to try out different combinations, even though they weren't what had popped into my mind earlier.

This one is closer to what I had envisioned, but still not quite right.  I do like the colors more though. I also used a stump to try to blend more evenly.  I like it, but I'll want to try it again.  Maybe with another set of oil pastels, one with more color options -- I certainly am not lacking in oil pastel options these days....   I'm also excited to see if more pictures will pop into my head during meditation.