Those Living, Those Passing Away

Those Living, Those Passing Away
2025
40 x 30 x 1.5 inches
(41 x 31 x 2 in. w/ frame)
Oil paint, dried rainbow grass,
khajur palm, whispering grass,
setaria, wheat, and gold leaf on canvas
 
 
"A bruised reed He will not break."
 
In this painting, reeds bend in a golden river, caught in the breath of wind that guides their gaze toward the heart of the landscape. Smoke billows from a fire burning across the hills — its haze drifting over water and sky — while the land itself seems to exhale. Bent reeds stand in the foreground, unbroken, holding their form near a dying tree whose last leaf clings to its branch. Eyes of the scene turn toward the center stream, where old and new reeds lie beside a leaning spear — sunk, splintered, and heavy with meaning.
 
Behind the horizon, mountains rise — echoing Ararat, Sinai, and Zion — overlooking the valleys below, where wheat, grasses, trees, and shrubs grow under the sun of late summer. Every element is part of a continuous spiritual narrative: the fire recalls Gehenna and the abyss; the water, both refuge and peril — marsh, mire, and mythic river. The spear echoes Saul's, the Roman hasta (of subhastatio), and the one that pierced Christ's side. It is the idol of false strength, lifted by the world but powerless to save. The dying tree  stands as both curse and calling — a witness to judgment, idolatry, and the cross.
 
This landscape was not drawn from reference or plan. It rose from within — formed by internal memory, spiritual reflection, and the ridges in the gesso beneath the paint. Its genesis was a single prompt:
 
How is inner peace felt or contemplated when surrounded by those who mock, repay good with evil, and pursue approval through corruption?
 
This painting is an invitation to look inward and outward simultaneously. The plants, the land, the fire, and the water — all speak to the soul's condition. Are we rooted and flourishing like trees by living water? Or are we withering under the weight of pride and performance, disconnected from grace?
 
Christ is the redeemer of the entire landscape — the One who holds the deed to the world. His love is not abstract; it is intimate, restorative, and real. In a world that celebrates division and performance, this piece speaks to those who feel isolated in their conviction, those seeking peace that the world cannot give.
 
Let this work remind you: God knows where you are planted. He sees what you've sown. His Spirit calls you deeper — toward restoration, away from the need for worldly approval, and into communion with Him. When the wind stirs and trials rise like smoke over hills, may your heart recall this truth:
 
You are seen. You are loved. You are called.
"Behold, all things have become new."
 
 
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