Look at My Lil’ Plant

Interesting story:

I received My Lil’ Plant the year I started college. I’m Grateful that it was young and healthy and didn’t need self-centered me at all.

After college, My Lil’ Plant followed me back to Lubbock. I was still young and dumb, I hardly knew anything – I think I watered it once a year, if I remember correctly. And I never loved on it, I never thought about it at all, and I certainly did not understood its importance.

But by the Grace of God, it survived my immaturity, and so did I.

Back then My Lil’ Plant loved the Las Vegas climate and it flourished, and there I paid it a tiny bit more attention, but just barely.

Then, Bless its heart, it struggled to survive in Ruidoso NM … it’s too cold.

So by the time I got to Bastrop, Texas It was damn near dead. AND not once did I EVER consider the age of the old gal.

But finally for the first time, with my plant barely hanging on, I prayed for it. I desperately wanted it to survive.

Because now I understand after 42 year, just how important this plant has been.

It’s been with me through my complete darkness, through all my mistakes and losses and loneliness, and then now, it’s here by my side, even in my wildly successful marriage.

See God honors His Word wherever it is found … every time. It’s His Integrity stake, it’s His Love.

SO If you got nothin’ between your ears about Him because you’re not interested, you need to know at a minimum that His Word is Truth, it’s foundational, and based on His Word there is FREEDOM.

31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

You also need to know that this is a God-given choice, and whatever you choose, He will honor your decision and butt out of your life completely.

FYI: I’m NOT TALKING ABOUT RELIGION. God did NOT invent religion. PERIOD. Religion is man’s attempt to gain God’s favor by man’s efforts. As fallen mankind (Rom 3:23 ..for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God), we have nothing of sufficient value that can earn or gain His favor.

I’m talking about a personal relationship between you and God through Jesus Christ. (John 14:6 Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.)

I’m talking about living inside God’s Grace pipeline. It’s like living inside the eye of a hurricane, all is calm in there even though a storm is swirling all around you. BTW the storm is allowed by God as a part of the invisible war, the Angelic Conflict that’s ongoing, that we’re here to play a part in resolving.

So back to My ‘Lil Plant, how do you fall in love with something?

You learn their mind and you start understanding how important they are in your life. Your gratitude overflows for what’s been provided.

I ramble so …

SAY HELLO to my lil’ friend. Back from the dead.

1980 – 42 years ago, a neglected friend that I prayed with all my heart for the first time that I would survive, because just now I finally GET it.

See it turns out, I was born with a horrific skin disease.

This plant has been with me every step of the way as I was cured of a disease that doctors say there is no cure. And it was through prayer that I found the right doctors who treat disease with REAL food, and a little plant that God provided.

So you see, GOD sent me a helpmate, that He knew I would would not appreciate but would desperately need.

LOOK AT it go! Looks better than the day I got it 42 years ago. It LOVES Bastrop’s weather.

I pray DAILY that I will love it, as well, soon.

Eagle in egg tempera

“Is that Dinner?” my first egg tempera to start, and the second to complete, is ready for its forever home.

I’m offering a pre-online store deal on this painting as I need to cover my expenses related to my upcoming event in Ruidoso, and I pledge to give the Lincoln County food bank 25% of the net proceeds from the sale.

This beauty is 11″x14″ framed and ready to hang.

Here’s my special offer: I’m asking $400, and I’ll pay the sales tax and the cost of shipping it to you. Next week Jaybird Lynch Digital Marketing Works will put it up on my online store, Hello From Ruidoso for $900.00, so I encourage you get it now

Message me if you’re interested in owning this lovely work!

Let us for once not let Kevin Stepp, my sweet and generous husband, have to bare the cost of my zany lifestyle. Lol.

I look forward to seeing you. Love and peace to all.

(I hope you see the airplane that our eagle friend has spotted … is that what’s for dinner? Na)

Food palette painting completed.

My painting is complete. It’s egg tempera with pigments made from our community garden, and I framed it in a Bastop area tree branch.

This piece is to be hung on the wall.

It’s my first completed egg tempera painting. But what’s most interesting is that my friend Todd and I created the pigment from nature using a method inspired by Caroline McCoy’s restaurant FOOD NY 1970s and burnt cigar.

I have titled it ”On the invisible battlefield.”

it’s priced at $425, shipping included. This could be an important piece, but only buy it if you like it, and hope the best is ahead for me in my fine arts career. Lol.

I think it is.

Framed in a branch and hangs on the wall with one nail
Detail

My palette made with pigment we ground.

FOOD Palette

Go slay the day, people.

Nutrition, Hydration, Movement and most importantly, Soul Peace…

You get these things, right ?!? And that’s when the magic of the human experience begins.

You are on an invisible battlefield, whether you know it or not. I look around and fear the majority of us have layered down and forgotten how powerful these elements are.

Get up. Even though you’re been knocked down, get up. Then pull someone else up once you have your power back and then GO SLAY THE DAY!

Today I get to show my egg tempera to my teacher, William Clay. It’s what we will call from this day forward my “FOOD Palette.” The term was inspired by Carol Goodden (Caroline McCoy) owner of FOOD 1970 New York, with the help of my new talented friend Todd Jordan, who is creating pigments out of his garden and kitchen so I can experiment with their magic. In his own words, hear my teacher, William Clay describe his experience as a student of world-renowned artist Peter Hurd.

I recommend all my artist friends research the term FOOD NY 1970. The story is well documented and was the inspirational place to hang where the food was the art and most anyone could afford a hot meal, and have amazing creative interaction with the best, most talented artists at the time.

SO…

What do you get to do today and HOW can you do it in PEACE?

Mama Jana would love to hear!

On the invisible battlefield
FOOD

Jana Lynch is returning to Ruidoso!

Hey, Ruidoso friends, let’s make butterflies again to honor our loved ones and benefit the Lincoln County Food Bank!

Me at The Peace Garden Tree located at Wingfield Park


As the creator of the “Hello From Ruidoso” Peace Garden, I’m delighted to announce that I’m coming back to paint butterflies with you to honor once again those whom we love. In the Fall of 2021 this community collaboration art installation was relocated to Wingfield Park where it remains to be enjoyed by everyone.

Since my husband Kevin and I left the Village, many locals and visitors have continued to honor their loved ones by painting and installing butterflies, just as so many of us have done in the past. So we’re coming back for one fun-filled weekend to celebrate our loved ones while raising money and awareness of the needs that are being requested of and met by the Lincoln County Food Bank.

Let’s kick this off Thursday, August 11 from 6:00pm – 9:00pm with a Meet-and-Greet Happy Hour at Casa Blanca Restaurant and Bar, 501 Mechem Dr, Rudoso, (575) 257-2495.

Then, on Friday, August 12 from 4:00pm – 8:00pm, everyone’s invited to meet me and my wonderful artist friends at a “Location To Be Announced” where you and any local artists can paint butterflies in honor or memory of your loved ones, too. Remember, pet’s are loved ones, so we can honor them as well, right?

A finally, we’ll enjoy time together on Saturday, August 13, from 9:00am – 1:00pm at the art installation located at Wingfield Park, for even more painting and the placement of your butterflies into the Peace Garden Tree.

This is a place of honor. It’s a commemoration of the passage for your loved ones as well as a way to show the love you have for them. It is such a magnificent way to remember them.

Do you want to honor a loved one by purchasing a butterfly to paint so it can live in this garden? A donation of $15 per butterfly will benefit greatly the Lincoln County Food Bank. Did you know we still have pavers available to display your family name? The cost is $100 each and Jana will paint your message right on the patio floor. And remember, we’re doing this to raise awareness to benefit the Lincoln County Food Bank, and to honor our loved ones on this first of its kind, always changing, community Art Installation.

Find matching merchandise at the retail shops on Sudderth Drive, HelloFromRuidoso.com, or at the event in August.

Contact Jana directly at JanaLynchArt@gmail.com if you have questions, or you would like to help me with this event. Or if you’d like to ask me to paint a butterfly for you before the event so it will be ready to be installed on Saturday the 13th at Wingfield. The cost is $30 for a custom design to match your loved one’s interests, and that price includes jewels and glitter!

Read more about this art installation at: https://paintedartist.com/2022/02/a-bit-about-jana/

Created by Jana Lynch this Community Collaboration Art Installation was moved to Wingfield Park on Oct 21, 2021 and is now waiting for your Butterfly to find a place to rest.
Make a butterfly that will be a part of the Peace Garden community art installation. This tree is where we honor our loved ones.

Honor your loved ones in the patio art located at Wingfield Park. Contact Jana today to reserve your spot. ($100 must be reserved by August 1st)

It was 10 years ago today …

Good times! Look at us, just hanging out on a wall and on a waiting list to get a location for our first Jana’s RedRoom local emerging artist gallery that Kevin would open for me and my friends:

That was 10 years ago today.

I was waiting to get a space for Jana’s RedRoom gallery. It would be a place where I would show all my artist friends’ work. My friends were from the Fine Art schools I was attending at both University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) and College of Southern Nevada (CSN).

My husband bought us a wall in the Art Factory Las Vegas for one month. Then on June 7 (my birthday, BTW…just say’n) I was told I had been selected for my first space. Over time we grew to become the biggest first floor space (1200 square feet) in The Arts Factory at the time.

Thanks for sharing this memory, Bobby J Wysocki, you’re one of the most talented artist in all of Las Vegas. I’m with you. I miss those days.

The importance of the outdoors when living tiny

I’m surrounded by talent.

Check out my outdoor studio below! It will be weighted to protect against the winds, thanks to my talented neighbor Todd.

I love my neighbors already.

It seems that Todd brought this entire community together. Well, at least he’s brought our two buildings together (that’s eight units), by building a community garden. I has an outdoor movie theater with a drop-down movie screen, speakers for great music, and a gaming center. It has little lights strung in the trees and a composter where I’ve been instructed to put the girl’s poop. Oh, and it also has a pond with a waterfall and a fire pit.

Everyone gathers there to listen to music or watch movies. I played a version of the Pac-Man game called Munchies. I was playing against a guy named DJ who kicked my butt. And if you know me, you know I’ve always claimed no one under age 50 can beat me at that game, but he did. Rum and cigars seems to be the flavor over there, and an abundance of animals come around the area. It’s magical.

Todd is my favorite because he has as special kind of talent. He forges metal. I hope to learn mold making with his help. He is extremely talented with his hands, and he can make, build or fix just about anything. So I believe we’ll be making assemblage pieces of art together. Jay Lynch will help us market them.

Yesterday Todd helped me build my little outdoor studio. He’s going to weight it down so it doesn’t blow away in the wind.

He’s also going to wire my outdoor space for electricity so I can cool myself or add a spot light.

I got up last night to go see the lunar eclipse, I walked across the little stretch of land that separates my building from the garden that Todd built, and people were still gathered there. When I told everyone why I was there, Todd ask Alexis when the event would be taking place. Sadly we had missed it. My point in telling you this is to explain just how equipped that garden is, and how it seems this community has made the most out of outdoor living.

I still have to complete my home office/art space. I have available about 180 sf of our 420 sf of space for that. My climate control storage for everything art is still a complete wreck. We will call it ArtCave from this day forward.

I hope everything will fit in that space so I can put my hands on my supplies when I need them.

I love this rock pathway that winds around here.

Getting down to Tiny living. It’s no joke.

Well we moved 300 square foot worth of stuff that we’ve been living on over to the 420 sf efficiency yesterday. Mind you we lived just fine on just that stuff over the last 5 months.

Since April 20 I’ve been pairing down two completely packed floor to ceiling storage units. This efficiency apartment is where I worked to get it sorted.

My new efficiency apartment. Another round of pairing down must happen today.

What was left after this process was what I felt we should keep out of all the stuff we still owned. Mind you, we started this process last year in Ruidoso where I had a huge garage sale and we even sold all my furniture with the house.

If you’re going to do something like this you have to understand you can only wear one shirt at a time. You are extremely blessed if you have seven shirts so that you only have to do laundry once a week.

The rest of the stuff you have is just a heavy burden that keeps you from moving freely about the planet.

And trust me once you’ve been evicted from your life a few times you realize just how ridiculous it was to acquire all this shit in the first place.

This tiny live thang is no joke folks. You got to be ready to let it all go. It’s an emotional journey because you learn that no one wants your old memories.

My advice to the young? Live way below your means. It’s a blast to be able to move around your day financially free.

I recommend a storage for your seasonal stuff like ski wear, scuba gear, and suitcases. But only stuff you know 109% you will use again. (Store no memories)

My reward. And future home to my outdoor art studio.

I will not be selling my stuff this time. It all will go to a battered women’s shelter where there’s a new gal arriving almost daily, someone who was evicted from her life with only the shirt on her back and a child on her hip and one wrapped around her leg.

Selfishly I ask, when do I get to make art again?

I can feel my heart quake as I still have to build an outdoor studio space and still have to get 1200 sf of Art Cave stuff to fit into 300 sf in the cold storage. I will be donating extra supplies somewhere because again, I can only use one tube of white paint at a time. But truly I hope it fits. Lol I love my art stuff the very most.

FYI when this is all done I will still own too much stuff.

Gawd will this ever end?! lol

I’m beat.

My Art stuff in cold storage has to be organized into a workable studio.
Our summer river gear hanging on the outside.

Take a ride on the Grace Pipeline

Cool things happen on the Grace Pipeline.

God answers my questions. For a direct connection with Him I’ve learned that you gotta jump inside the Grace Pipeline because in there He will answer prayer.

Today while in there I asked a question. As a side note: I should tell you I’m floating on the river again. It’s mine now, the Colorado river.

I asked, “Are the big red winged dragon flies the males, or the smaller blue ones?” Now of course, I could’ve Googled it for an answer but I didn’t have my phone so I asked the question in prayer.

Then a brown dragon fly landed on me, a female. FYI I’VE NEVER noticed a brown one ever. They know they’re safe with me. I love them and I’m convinced I’m an animal whisperer.

So she landed. And then a male (a blue dragon fly) landed on top of her. Soon his legs are on my knee, and she’s about 3/4 his overall size. And FYI in case you’re wondering, her Vaa-Jay-Jay (my made-up word to maintain a PG rating here) is on her shoulder blades…I’m relating it to humans here, sorta.

I think I’ll paint this scene one day.

They stayed about five minutes. He didn’t move, but I’d say she obviously liked it. She kept rubbing her head.

Their eyes are huge, and I will exaggerate that in my painting.

Then they left, and then I cried.

I cried because I realized that God, who is in His Heaven with his incredible sense of humor, heard me immediately. And as a blessing he answered my silly-ass prayer.

Just ask me if you wanna learn how to ride the Grace Pipeline. It’s easy and I’m a pro now. Lol.

This photo I found online later. My pair stayed way straighter while sitting on me.

I’m a bit jelly of the male. Why is it the males in nature are most always so much prettier than the females? I’m so sorry boys, if the world told you guys that you are bad…It is a lie.

You do not have to be in church to be with God. But just like it is with anyone else, you have to learn His mind (His Word) to feel His presence so you can learn to enjoy Him.