May 27, 2009 – Heavy rains. My dogs have retreated to the porch. All three of them like to lie out in the rain, and barely notice it, but today it was too heavy.
  I got a message from an artist in Pittsburgh, discouraged by the burden of being laid off, finding no time for her work, struggling to deal with part-time jobs and kids. It is, she wrote me, important that she keep painting, keep working on her art.
 It is. Nobody can tell anybody else what to do, or truly see inside of their life, but the drive to create is powerful, and it is like a flame that can easily be blown out by life, which overwhelms us with things we think we need and have to do.
  I hope she keeps on. Maria and I talk about this all of the time. Encouragement is an essential nutrient, especially when times are challenging. I am determined to create, create, create. And then keep on creating. It is never easy or simple, not for anyone, not even for the people who seem to have it easy. It is a daily choice, an elemental one. I told her not to quit. I hope she doesn’t.