“The Separation” on display at Bank of America Tower
Exhibition Reception
Seperation 20"x30" mixed media on canvas
I have a sister 2 years older than me. As children, we were inseparable in all we did. I have memories of my sister holding my hand wherever we went, if she had to leave my side she would often hug me and give me a kiss on the cheek. We had our moments of sibling rivalry that comes with being a kid, but what sticks in my head is the additional layer of protection and comfort she was in my life.
I have several memories of being separated from my sister. There was the one time we went to vacation bible school, I remember we just had a fantastic bus ride to the school where we entertained ourselves by yelling at truck drivers to “HONK YER HORN!!!” And you could not imagine the excitement and screaming involved when one of them actually blew their horn. As we unloaded from the bus they started to separate us by age and that’s when it happened. I could feel that sinking feeling in my gut as I realized I wasn’t by my sister, they sat me down with a Jesus coloring book page and a green crayon. I knew Jesus wasn’t green but I was so emotional and distracted that I remember carefully coloring him in green until I couldn’t hold it in any more and the tears started flowing. One of the teachers came over to me and I told her my stomach hurt and she asked if I wanted to see my sister, of course I said yes. Luckily, they reunited me with her and all was good again.
Then there was time my sister started kindergarten. I have several memories of watching her get on the bus and wishing I could be with her. It was a great day when I finally got to ride the bus to school with her, but a sad day when I found out we’d be separated again once we got to school. It was a vicious cycle but I finally learned to cope 
