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Have you survived Blue Monday—the third Monday in January, often called the most depressing day of the year? I didn’t come up with this term, but I understand the sentiment. The cheer of the holidays already feels like a distant memory, and realizing we’re halfway through January is a stark reminder of how quickly a year can slip by. Despite the surprising gift of sunshine in Vancouver these past weeks, winter still holds us in its grip. While many rush to the mountains to play in the snow, I couldn’t be happier at home, immersed in creative projects with my cat Milo for company.

Winter always feels like the longest season. But soon, the city’s flora will shake off its winter sleep, unfurling green limbs to turn parks and neighborhoods into living botanical gardens. Lush trees, vibrant flowers, and lengthening days will arrive, casting soft hues of dusk into our late evenings. How comforting it is to know that winter always yields to spring, and spring to summer. I’m a sucker for spring blooms, sunsets by the ocean, and summer love stories. That’s why I’ve paired a collection of my paintings with a snippet of a story—to help you escape the aftertaste of Blue Monday.

I spent countless evenings at the beach with my late partner Alex, admiring the sunset colors across the sky from our picnic blanket after one last dip in the ocean. People often ask if the following story is about him. The answer is both yes and no. It’s stitched from fragments of past love stories, as well as dreams and desires for those yet to come. It’s a love story that transcends time.


Playful Awakening

Five Paintings. One Story

The awakening of spring, the playfulness of summer, and snippets of the love story that was and the one that is yet to come.

During the dark cold months  
layers cover my skin and my desire  
The warm air carries the smell  
of flowers and curiosity  
I can't ignore it anymore  
You got my full attention  
  
We eat with our hands  
We laugh  
and then we swim in the ocean  
I'd rather bathe in the green water  
of your eyes  
The greenest eyes I've ever seen  

We sit on the sand side by side  
I'm cold but I don't say a word  
The silence holds this moment together  
We are a snapshot in time  
A picture of a memory  
If I speak, I might wake up  

I see the mountains in the distance  
I wonder whether they can see me  
and what they witnessed in the past  
How many lovers at the beach  
falling into the spell of sunset colors  

I savor the tension between us  
Like two magnets  
our bodies pulled together  
but we don't dare to touch  
a hair's breadth keeps us apart  

I can already taste the kiss  
but the anticipation  
is more precious than the reward  
By the time I feel your lips  
I'm suspended in the summer air  

You taste like peaches and ocean


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