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Tucked into a block of row houses in Pittsburgh, this crazy explosion of hue is either one artist’s celebration of whimsy or a vibrantly painted junkyard. Depends on your perspective. And your love of the whimsical.
I found it delightful.
It is a bit of a mess, though. That’s part of the charm. Everywhere I turn, my eye takes in more than I can process – or even understand. Manikin heads on a table. Hand painted signs. Rocking horses by wild-hued chairs. Even an army of rats musters on a patch of sand.
The older I get the more crowded my life seems. With each passing day, the finite space in my mind continues to get filled up with memories and experiences until there’s hardly elbow room for more. I like to think that it’s a pleasant, organized gallery like an art museum where one can stroll and calmly contemplate each unique item while a nearby guard watches that we don’t get too close. But this art-yard makes me realize those memories are more of a jumbled mess, where one event is connected to and colored by the others around it.
It depends on your perspective.
Life, like this artist's yard, has an appearance of randomness. Don’t be deceived, though. Just as this chromatic chaos has a designer – a method behind the madness – so does our odd collection of experiences. In the great, mysterious interplay of God’s plan and our choices, he is creating – with us -- an amazing panoply of his goodness.
Sure, it’s complicated. We may have moments when we scratch our heads and ask, “What’s with the rats?” But as we widen our view, we see them as another element in this long work of art in the making. Take an even wider view and we understand that all that crazy color is what makes each of us unique.
It’s a challenging perspective to gain.
A healthy dose of whimsy helps.
Father God, you are the great artist, fashioning our lives into something wonderful. And amazingly, you invite us to enter into the work as co-creators. Thank you for that what may look us as a random collection of experiences actually has a purpose. And thanks for all the color!
