The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - House Keys

The Things She Carried - House Keys
Oil on Masonite

7"X5"
This concludes the contents of My Mother's Last Purse. Where do we go from here? 

The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - Comb

The Things She Carried - Comb

Oil on Masonite

5"X7"

On the eve of Thanksgiving I am grateful. First for family and friends who love and are loved by me. They are my foundation and at the heart of all that I am. 

And health. Thanks to Dr Jessica Keane and Dr. Michael Parnes for restoring mine. 

And beauty that is everywhere, in the most mundane of objects we carry. 

Contents of My Mother's Last Purse - Coin Purse

Contents of My Mother's Last Purse - Coin Purse

Oil on Masonite

5"X7"
It took most of the day to wade through my list of errands. Trying to amass the right clothes and shoes that are both comfortable and appropriate is a never ending exercise in futility for one who never learned to like shopping.
I came home and got back to My Mother's Last Purse, where the memory of her daily handling of this lowly little object seemed almost monumental in its significance.

Island Window

Island Window

Oil on Wood

8"X8"

SOLD

The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - Checkbook

The Things She Carried - Checkbook

Oil on Masonite

7"X5"

The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - Wallet

The Things She Carried - Wallet

Oil on Masonite

7"X5"

It is green fabric, well worn, with velcro closures. Rustic. The kind an outdoorsman might stuff in his backpack. This is the wallet my mother carried.  $22 in one dollar bills, 17 fives, a ten and 2 twenties,  $100 traveler's check that will never be cashed.

Various i.d. with her photo and signature proving who she was, a poignant proof that she was here.  In amongst some business cards for massage and acupuncture is a receipt from a favorite dim sum restaurant where she dined with one of us, in the midst of Life, celebrating nothing in particular,  just weeks before hers ended.  Of all the things, that is the one that moves me most. A reminder to do and be and tell and celebrate each and every day.

The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - Chapstick

Contents of My Mother's Last Purse - Chapstick

Oil on Masonite

7"X5"

Back to business. Celebrating the simple things that are our life. 

VOTE!

VOTE!

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

The Things We Save - The Things She Carried - Billfold

The Things She Carried - Billfold

Oil on Masonite

5"X7"

Billfold. Containing pesos. Leftover from a recent trip. Saved for a future trip.