Heart Work

The title for the group exhibition opening tomorrow is the current mantra for this time I find myself in. My heart is feeling a bit bruised as of late. We put Calvin down only two weeks ago, and are getting on with a life without his presence in the house. To be sure, we are doing fine, but we all miss him and are sad to be without that very good boy.

Image taken with Fujifilm x100vi, Jan. 28, 2026

In contrast to our own personal grief, the world outside our bubble seems a fever dream of hysteria, mistrust, anger- a rabbit hole of backwards ideology. This truly discomforting discourse punctures through our daily life at unexpected times, and it’s getting harder and harder to shake off the impact.

That’s why the words “heart work” have come to feel significant in these coldest months right before the thaw. I’m trying to stay stitched together, and I’m doing the hard work to remember what good there is around me and what a miracle it is that we can even have these disagreements.

The human species is flawed. Perhaps it is arguably the most flawed. Those musings also feel relevant remembering the purity of heart in one furry friend. He loved us so much, forgave our every flaw, and looked up to us with his whole heart.

This one is for you, old buddy. We’ll miss you.

<3