This painting
represents my journey. Before I learned what
I learned about myself and finding peace
within me, and God, and being authentic for
who I am when it comes down to my own same-sex
attraction, I felt like I was living with
thorns in my soul. And as I began to be aware and
I experienced the Atonement, really--that feeling of knowing
that I'm worthy of the Savior. I feel like I'm reaching
out to the love of God. And really, I decided to
have a tree because it represents the tree of life. And in the scriptures we
learn that the tree of life, when we experience the
fruit, is the love of God. So in this picture, I basically
see myself reaching out, upward, within the tree,
to the light, to God. And it's just like with
Lehi--once you experience the love of God, you want to
share it with the people you love. You also see some
lines coming out from the bottom of the
heart on the painting. Those six lines are my children.
And what's in the heart,
the part that is the trunk, that foundation--you might not
see it--but to me represents my marriage and my wife.
That's what this painting
represents to me. It's my healing process,
it's my awakening, it's my way of constantly
reaching to God.
It's just light.