empty nest. 

I always thought I would marry and have children but that didn’t happen for me. My best friend, also an artist, and I decided to have an exhibition together. We chose the theme empty nest, a concept she had been exploring as a mother of three. Having no family I pondered what my nest would contain. Then it dawned on me – I was a schoolteacher! I devoted most of my life to my kids, thousands of them.

I had each of my students do a drawing of a single stick. We cut them out and arranged them like a nest, on a bright yellow watercolor circle. I may have no biological family, but my kids have and will always be my bright spot in the world.