Today is summer solstice, the longest day of light this year. Summer is officially here and life begins to take off at warp speed. It has been a busy couple months, a lack in my writing can confirm that. Home life has been busy with building garden beds, making space for all the plant babies that my partner and I have been patiently waiting for the right time to plant. The garden now bustles with the bees, the sugar snap peas are producing and we wait on everything else, more patience. I thought gardening would be somewhat easy, gardening at 7000ft. elevation in the high desert does come with it’s own set of challenges and I was sure we were on top it and then the birds came from above taking out bean plant after bean plant. And then the voles came from below snatching a beloved hollyhock. We also have a mystery gardener that comes in the wee hours of the morning deciding to just remove plants without a trace, not sure how to combat that. It is all a lesson in letting everything be, doing our best to provide the best conditions but nature is gonna do what it wants so who am I to stop it. We have entrusted Bodhi, my best fur friend and companion to keep the ravens and voles at bay but he seems to do the work on his time, when he feels like it. I think he is more enamored by the beautiful giant bees we currently have in the yard. Chasing them with no success, thank goodness.

Summer is a day to celebrate the sun, all that it brings.

Light to the earth, fire in our hearts and a yang energy, outward movement of growth and expansion. I started a tradition last year, something I learned from another artist who lives in Iceland, the beauty of social media connecting us from all over the place. On summer solstice you collect flowers and such, all that you have access to, create a wreath and leave it on your front door throughout the year. On winter solstice the wreath is burned in the fire, returning the cycles back to the earth. I love this tradition so much and typically forget. Today the wreath is made, yes!!

Here in Northern Arizona, the summer solstice brings us closer to the rain. Summer monsoon rain, a decadent weather event here in the southwest. Water pours from the sky and our worries are calmed and washed away. There is a period of time from May to June when everything gets hotter and the winds do what they do, blow hard. This dries everything out, everything feels a little hopeless, agitated and such. You can watch the watering holes dry up, water becomes a scarcity until the rains come. Rain equals relief, life on all fronts. We are no strangers to wildfires here, we all cross our fingers and hope our forests can make it fire free until monsoons. Sometimes we are lucky, other times not so much. This has been a tough June, too many fires so far. Loss of structures, loss of the wild kind of life and smoke plumes so big that bring tears to your eyes, something I have never seen out of 28 years of living here. It is a reminder of why we live here, why it is important to love all around you and enjoy the time you can, it can all be burnt away in a second. There was a sense of communal loss, trauma, and mourning on this last one. You could feel it in the air. I had to sit down one day and make art, put on some local bluegrass band singing about the mountain and draw lupine flowers. This set my heart right again.

Cancer coming out of it’s shell

Not only today is the beginning of summer but also the beginning of Cancer season, i read this today and loved; “With the sun in Cancer, this is a good time for everyone to take ownership of their feelings and their actions and to focus on loving each other and overcoming selfish goals,” says professional psychic and astrologer Stina Garbis. Time to come out of our shells and step into the light of the days to come.

I have been getting back into the art making production. Ramping up for a big weekend, 4th of July, for Art in the Park. I am pretty excited about this, been sometime since I have done an outdoor art fair. It is a lot of work and sometimes the weather works against you but feeling pretty good about all the work I have made and sharing space with a wonderful art friend so I am sure a good time to be had no matter the outcome. Plus I get a restful day in Oak Creek after, this is sounding so good about now.

Condors

I recently completed a new bird piece, I painted a Condor. I was compelled by this bird, they are kind of ugly and also beautiful at the same time. When I was on the Colorado river last year, I saw them perched high above on the bottom of a bridge, they seemed so far away and yet still so big. Their wingspan can be up to 9ft, that is amazing and one day I hope to paint them in flight, life size!! They are born with their eyes wide open, in a symbolic sense they are seen as watchers. Birds of prey are helpmates for their ecological systems, cleaning up carrion which helps keep the natural world clean. They mate for life and both partners take turns in raising of the chicks. I am enamored by these giant birds.

So with all that rambling on with the things in my mind, I hope summer is a wonderful time for you. A time to expand and explore all that life has to offer, to follow the fire and face the sun with gratitude. May the light of today sustain you until the return of light again on winter solstice.

See ya at Flagstaff Art in the Park over 4th of July weekend!!

Jill Sans is an artist based in Flagstaff, Arizona. Her work is that of beautification from paintings to cosmetic tattooing. She currently works out of The HeArt Box Studio and Gallery in historic downtown, Flagstaff.