Heron and Fleur de Lis is about two of the reasons that I love the area in which I live- the abundant wildlife of the wetlands, and their proximity to my favorite city. A damaged wood carving of a blue heron, a couple of pieces of bamboo, and a ceiling tin with a raised fleur de lisare supported by a bamboo tray from my house. 14" x 19" SOLD

My friend Nan purchased this piece, and wrote a beautiful poem about it. She and her husband have relocated to Florida, but they have left a part of their lives behind like so many other people. We miss our friends who could not stay after Katrina ripped their lives apart-but we are so grateful for their continued presence in our lives. Here is Nan's poem:

FOR LORI

The blue heron stands proudly, bamboo legs spread.
Behind it, a raised fleur de lisle on a foliage-green background
is attached to a rattan tray.
From the chair where I sit beside a lamp in my house of exile
the piece looks somewhat surreal.
I see a moonlight-like shimmer beneath the heron on the left-hand side.
Stop. Wait. Look closely.
The fleur de lisle is a piece of ceiling tile.
The tile is bent, so the lamplight’s spill results in the illusion of the moonlight shimmer.
The paint has been worn away from the heron’s side
as if it had been beaten by a brutal, uncaring Mother Nature,
and the basket is broken, with missing spikes.
The piece reminds us that Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc on the Mississippi
Coast,
leaving it -- and us -- battered and bruised.
The piece has been fashioned of found remnants of people’s lives --
mourned, regretted, lost forever.
But we cherish it,
because it also reminds us
that we have spent our lives celebrating the artists
who create order out of chaos --
beauty out of destruction.