My heart goes out to the people of Nova Scotia. My heart broke many times this week as I heard one CBC Radio One host after another tell us about the victims and we learned over and over again all the holes that are left in so many lives as we needlessly lost some amazing people. I heard from my brother about his new distrust of the police, wondering if an RCMP vehicle is actually a true car carrying an honest officer. My brother Chris is living, working, raising a family in beautiful Nova Scotia and in our many conversations this week, I know that he and all Nova Scotians are shaken to their very core. Such hatred and violence is beyond all comprehension. But as the moving online tribute last night proves, love and hope are stronger and will always rise above hate.
I spent my week painting away each day, one tiny dot at a time, these N.S. tribute heART stones. I thought a lot about the heartbreak so many are feeling. And I know that that heartbroken province needs to know right now that we care and support them. When I was planning my heART stones tribute, I knew exactly the stones I would use. I collect stones from many places, bring them back to my studio and create meaningful heART stones for others. These stones were collected from the South Shore in N.S. by my nieces and nephews and brought to me last summer when Chris and fam travelled from Halifax to visit. They were perfect for this purpose.
A friend from Hillsdale has extended family who live in Nova Scotia and two of her family members were murdered last Sunday: Peter and Joy Bond. She was in my heart this week too. Mansell, our 17 year old son who just got his license before COVID-19 state of emergency was announced is more than happy to help me with any delivery I have, drove a few minutes down the road and dropped a little N.S. stone with a modified flag for Connie – my little attempt to try to help her feel better. She was happy to discover the little bag she found on her stoop where Mansell had delivered it. Later on I remembered that I had not let her know that the stone I painted for her was actually from N.S., so I sent her a little note to let her know. Here is what she wrote back:
I was so grateful to see that she had found some comfort in her little stone during such a difficult time.