The maze at Hampton Court Palace has given me food for thought.
As a puzzle consisting of a network of hedges through which one has to find a way to the centre, the maze is often seen as a metaphor for life.
At any given junction in the maze and in life, there are many possible ways to proceed. Poor choices can lead to time wasted or dead ends, but sometimes to insight and good ideas.
When we come to a dead end in a maze or life, and then repeatedly try to retrace our steps, expecting to find a different outcome, we experience a deep sense of frustration.
In order to find our way, ultimately we have to admit to our mistakes and look at new and different possibilities. If we are unable to do this, we live a life of stagnation and deep frustration.
As we look at an overview of the maze, it all looks quite simple, but when we are in it, everything changes. Rather than 'seeing' the way, we have to 'find' our way, and to do it successfully, we need to be able to enjoy and observe every step we take. Once we understand that the ultimate goal of finding the centre is just one small part of the whole experience then we can enjoy the journey.
I painted this image during the period of massive change in my own life over twenty years ago. Until this point I had been repeating the same patterns over and over again, with ultimately the same disappointing results.
The image shows me hidden in the background of the painting, with my studio cat Tushy regarding the situation in the foreground. In hindsight, this was the beginning of admitting to my mistakes, making new choices, and beginning to take a different path.
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On the subject of someone who is clearly following the right path...I watched with amazement Andy Murray and Stanislas Wawrinka play at Wimbledon last evening.
The 'focus' that both these young men exhibited was extraordinary, and although I am delighted that Andy Murray is now through to the quarter finals, I also take my hat off to Wawrinka for being such an amazing opponent.
We have an exciting week ahead.
Each Wednesday I will be giving a new water colour demonstration through this blog.
A Bientot
