These Grace-Filled Days

It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, time stands still and you feel as though the entire universe has revolved around you.

Years ago, I was invited to a week-long painting salon with renowned landscape painter Scott L. Christensen in his Craftsman studio in Idaho. Don Howard, the other contestant, was an Oregon-born painter who stood tall and lean.

At the time, I was a busy police chief, and painting landscapes allowed me to escape the pressure, politics, and anxiety of my job.

Scott, whose paintings I adore, was a workshop instructor I had previously attended. Scott asked if I wanted to return to the advanced workshop once it was over.

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