Draw Time with Bethany

Would you like to improve your drawing skills while stuck at home with only your internet connection to comfort you?

If so, then why not invest an hour learning to draw from me!

This is a drawing I made while following a video from the painter, Bob Ross. I made this painting to try out doing some backgrounds and environments. I’m rather happy with how it turned out. What do you think?

I love to draw because I love bringing characters and things from my imagination into the world! Because of this uncertain time, it will be wonderful to express yourself with a little bit of art and conversation.

I mainly draw characters. Here are some examples of my most recent pieces.

These are chibi mascots I made for my friend Emma who wanted to create her own anime convention.

She really wanted the characters to be bright and to pop out with more fun, modern fantasy elements. So I made them look energetic and colorful.

Auntie Lisa asked me to make this drawing of Hana in 2015. Since I don’t often draw animals, this was a fun challenge to see if I could properly draw the different patches of Hana’s black and white fur, as well as the various shading levels.

Here’s a drawing that I made with colored pencils. This is one of my original characters based on one of my favorite video games. Her name is Xarin. Working on Xarin I was testing my ability to create a soft, shiny look with her lavender hair. 

In this painting I helped one of my students. He requested me to help him draw Baby Yoda. This was a request I had been dying to get for so long. We mainly used Watercolor Pastels for this drawing. I was able to help him add some shading and work in the folds in his clothing.

I love to draw, and I want to share that with others. I may not be the best, but I will try to provide a fun experience where we can all talk and do art together, maybe bring a little light and beauty into the world!

This is a character for a story I created named Thee. In her world, I made her to be a space goddess/angel so I aimed to give her an otherworldly feel, especially with her galaxy hair that gushes down all around her and almost fills the painting.

During the lockdown I will host a drawing class on Thursdays at 2pm.  We will learn to draw many different things. Because this week is Easter week I will start by showing you how to draw Easter themes -- like bunnies, painted eggs in baskets, spring flowers, or even the cross in three dimensions!

In the future we can learn to draw many other things such as characters.

Here’s a sketch I did of Lydia.

Join me on Thursday from 2-3pm. Make sure you have a pencil, an eraser, as much paper as you want (printer paper is acceptable), and whatever colored pencils, markers, or whatever colors you have in your possession. Just click on the button to learn how to join my class!

Fruitfulness under the Threat of Virus, by Mark Hanson-Kahn

Swallowtail fully emerged from chrysalis, March 2020

So far this Spring, at our home, we witnessed the hatching of two swallowtail butterflies, abundant blossoms, and more birds in both variety and number than we have ever seen in our backyard. The air is cleaner and nature blooms.

Lilac wisteria and lilies in abundance at Santa Clara University

In stark contrast to these signs of spring, the month of April 2020 in the Bay Area promises more of the same: cool, overcast weather, Shelter in Place, minimal travel and contacts outside the home, shopping for essentials only (the lines at the grocery store should shorten), no new hires apart from Amazon warehouse operations and supermarket cashiers, and a daily mounting death toll.

Grim news. The many detractors of lockdown living — cabin fever, no personal space, a deficit of wifi connectivity, increasing waist lines and decreasing cardiovascular fitness, and boredom — may intensify.

Thus the question arises, how do we remain fruitful during this test of character? The coronavirus scourge is a test of character.

Too much screen time?

Don’t get me wrong: I empathize with restrictions placed upon our lives. We cannot meetup over cappuccino for a friendly conversation, our Spring Break getaway is cancelled, virtual worship is not the same as physical worship, the gym, track and pool are closed, we may need to ration the use of toilet paper, and we spend inordinate hours staring at backlit screens for work and entertainment. Yet the paradox is this: Nature is now resplendent in fruitfulness, we are not; what is the disconnect?

Empty gym and pool — how I miss them!

Fruitfulness during lockdown is a test of character. Do I discipline myself to focus on productivity and creativity? Can I keep calm when craziness erupts all around me? When the market crashes and my life savings evaporate; When fear of contamination stalks the streets; When nothing and no-one seems safe anymore? We face an immense amount of fear.

“IF …” by Rudyard Kipling. Originally written as advice from a father to his son, this poem applies to us all.

With our balmy climate, easy going populace and overall abundance, we seldom confront severe life tests in California (and I have lived all over the world). What are some tips to Fruitfulness in coronavirus times?

1. Accommodate. Ensure that those around you - families, roomies, spouses - have what they need in terms of space, supplies and activities. Looking to their needs is the prerequisite for harmony. This doesn’t mean you endorse disruptive behavior. On the contrary, if others need to learn self-discipline then creatively teach, train and demonstrate until they acquire those skills. Aim for unity, always remain calm.

2. Be organized. Be clear about what your priorities are and have set times to fulfill them. Organize your space and time, at first check in frequently with others and then make adjustments — we are in this for the next month or more. Upfront organizing, of both time and space, reaps rewards.

3. Celebrate! Celebrate life by singing and offering a prayer of Thanksgiving. Celebrate by preparing a special, candlelight meal with those you love. Celebrate by enjoying the emergent outdoors — we walk daily outdoors in the empty streets. Celebrate by planning future, rewarding events. Celebrate by noting in your journal or memory bank this singular time when God gave you this opportunity to … (you fill in the blanks).

Learning to happily ‘Shelter-in-Place.’

God has given us this opportunity for a reason. Make the most of it!

Take Care of Your Spirit and Body, by Glen Chew

Sheltered at Home?

Cannot get to the gym?

Suspicious man walking dog

This is a great time to start working out at home or neighborhood (maintaining social distance).  You can go:

• Take a brisk walk with your dog 

• Bicycling

• Slow dancing

• Vacuuming

You can also find numerous workout programs in Youtube or Pinterest.  
The benefits of exercising are:

• Boost your immune system

• Reduce the stress and anxiety of listening to all the Covid 19 news

• Improve heart health

If you are interested in working out, I have scheduled two Google Hangouts Workouts

Wednesday, March 25 

• 10:30 am - Low impact 15 minute workout

  • Link for the Google Hangout  - https://hangouts.google.com/call/lroLZJhuKRBrBO0xZp5TAEEE

• 11:15 am - FUNctional Fit 15 to 30 minute workout

  • Link for the Google Hangout - https://hangouts.google.com/call/p0IfSbZSNK36D-tW4SdAAEEE

Here are some recommendations for Youtube videos.

Low impact 10 minute workout

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-D7ncAC9rQ

Low impact cardio 8 minute workout

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37PwEIjGhEY

Worship Inspiration, by Linda Kim

Yesterday, our former Associate Pastor, Joe posted on Facebook a song that he recalled to soothe himself during this strange time of shelter in place.  The song was, I Need Thee Every Hour by Jars of Clay.  I believe this is an old beloved hymn but when I heard the reference to the song, I went back to when I was a baby Christian soaking in the wealth of Christian music.  The version that I remembered was from Sandi Patti.  Her version was paired with a song called The Stage Is Bare.  The meaning of the song tells a story of an after concert "low" when the crowds are gone and it's  just-her on the stage...alone with her God and Savior.

https://youtu.be/pWCK16VU44I

I had a wonderful, deep time of worship with this song last night... It may not speak to you to the same degree that it did for me, but I thought, hey maybe it's time to look up on Youtube a song or two or three... from YOUR past... Let it speak to you and worship God in this time of as Mike puts it, "Life in the slow lane"... Take some time with just you and God and pour out your praise, worship, fear, trust...your heart to Him... 

Psalm 91 has so much in it to relate to right now.  

Love, and prayers to you all!!

Linda

Psalm 91 

1. He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 

2.  I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." 

3.  Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly pestilence.

4. 4He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

5. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day,

6. nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.

7. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.

8. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. 

9. If you make the Most High your dwelling-- even the LORD, who is my refuge--

10. then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent.

11. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;

12. they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

13. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. 

14. "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

15. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.

16. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation." 

Preview YouTube video The Stage Is Bare / I Need Thee Every HourThe Stage Is Bare / I Need Thee Every Hour

Lockdown Living, by Mark Hanson-Kahn

SIP (Shelter in Place) limits us all. SIP both restricts the spread of COVID-19 and curtails everyday living. Looking at how coronavirus is unfolding in Italy, where the lockdown began around Milan in the northern province of Lombardy, we will likely be under lockdown for quite a while. So this can become a test of our endurance. In these early days, how are you doing? 

We have some food stocked up, plenty of toilet paper (hope it lasts), lots of books that have been gathering dust on the shelf, YouTube, an active virtual community, the California sunshine beginning to break through, and sometimes the sound of birdsong - God’s creatures are very welcome in our new reality! 

I’m learning a lot about Andrea’s job since she’s been working from home, and feel ready to start becoming a genetic counselor myself! I’ve also been swamped by a myriad of emails, plus trying to learn new ways to connect online. The lockdown has helpfully dragged me into twenty-first century living.

remaining six feet apart

On the downside I miss my weekly exercise. There’s no gym to frequent, no pool to dive into and, since I’m still recovering from a torn calf muscle, am not able to run. But most of all it’s fresh air that I crave, so we’ve taken some long, refreshing walks around the neighborhood. 

But there is another perspective, and that is: how to turn SIP into an Investment in the Kingdom of God? This test of endurance becomes a Kingdom Investment when I use it to reach out to others and increase care, harmony and hope. Let’s look at those ideas, and especially ‘hope’:

Care -- letting folks know I care and I am there for them  online, and if there’s an emergency I’ll turn up on their doorstep (or they can arrive at mine);

Harmony -- being on best behavior - both with my housemates and my virtual friends, taking time to craft thoughtful communications.

Hope -- SIP is only for a season, but it could be a long season perhaps 6-12 weeks. SIP reminds us that we’re waiting for heaven, and we know that when heaven arrives all else pales into insignificance. So, since Heaven is our real destination, how about we learn to talk about heaven, and what it will be like when Jesus comes again? We are not used to doing this yet, but just as the hope of heaven kept the New Testament Church alive, talking about Heaven can keep us spiritually alive. 

I remember the incredible story of Louis Zamperini stranded at sea in an open boat.  On the barren liferaft you are exposed to blistering sun in the daytime and chilling saltwater waves at night. There’s no food, no fresh water (but if you sip small amounts of seawater and collect the dew that forms each evening you will survive), no shelter apart from the clothes you wear. How do you keep up your hopes? Some slide into denial, gritting their teeth and repeating the mantra: ‘I can make it through. One day at a time. I will make it through.’ 

How did Zamperini survive? He thought of all the comforts he was missing and shared them with his boat mate. You are starving so imagine enjoying a fabulous five course meal, relish the flavor of every morsel, the sip of each beverage. You are lonely so relive the lively chatter of every family member and friend. Recreate the setting in your own mind -- perhaps an evening meal with glowing lights around an open hearth fire, or think of al fresco dining in the warm breeze of a summer garden, or out on the patio of a city cafe, under an expansive umbrella as city dwellers glide past and pigeons play in the fountains at the center of the plaza square. But we are not talking about food and friends and travel. We are talking about Heaven because, even with the deprivations of SIP, returning to ‘normal’ is not our destiny; Heaven is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFS-b56FuV8

So what is your picture of heaven?  Would it be the anachronism of singing hymns around an old bearded father-figure? Might it be a heart filled with rapture and praise? When Jesus comes again it’s true that we will fit into His agenda, and that includes making everything just and fair. It also involves making everything beautiful. And I’m sure it will be exciting and thrilling and our hearts will be continually full of the glorious presence of Jesus. 

So let your imagination roam. Think of what heaven might be like. Share your picture of heaven with family, friends, and the online strangers that you meet. We can turn SIP into “Sharing in Paradise” …

Grocery Shopping in the Coronavirus Era, by Mark Hanson-Kahn

It’s impossible to escape COVID-19 news, no matter where you look. And everyone, it seems, is becoming a COVID-19 expert - so I won’t claim to have some inside information. But you might have tried to stock up for the weeks ahead —

Some preventive action has been prevented:

I wanted to buy hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes but …

And with every restaurant closed it’s stock-up-at-the-grocery-store, and why-is-everything-sold-out?

Everything’s gone bananas!

It reminds me of a vivid moment in Romania before the Iron Curtain came down. The only food available on the grocery shelves was three mason jars of preserved plums. That was it. No bread, no milk, no eggs or meat or vegetables, or fresh fruit, or flour or butter or pizza, or instant meals or anything else. Just three jars of preserved plums.

A truck pulled up at the bakery next door and immediately a long, orderly line formed, all the way down the street. Fresh bread was wheeled into the store and the women behind the bakery counter began serving customers - limit one loaf per person. In no time the supply of bread was gone. 

My friend, Hugh, took a picture of me standing in the middle of the street with the bread queue behind me.. Immediately a leather gloved hand came down in front of the camera (that was in the pre-digital days when we used cameras loaded with film), flipped open the film cartridge and removed the reel, and the dark clad figure fixed us in a speechless, withering stare, and disappeared into the crowded street. We didn’t try shooting anymore pictures.

Thinking about the COVID-19 lockdown - it isn’t so bad. We may feel bored but we keep a lot of freedoms. We may not be able to physically worship  as a congregation, but we remain free to share our thoughts over several media platforms. We may not be able to fly distances but we are still free to touch base virtually and if needed to visit folks (taking precautions about coughs and contact) and drive places. And we know that the lockdown is for the good of our society rather than being totalitarian control.

More than all this, we have freedom to unravel the spiritual mysteries of life.

If you heard our virtual message on Sunday (https://www.orchardvalley.org/recent-sermons) you’ll know that there are some things that we should be afraid of (but usually aren’t), and other things that we are often afraid of — but which we really shouldn’t fear. So I would like to encourage us all to go deeper into God.

How do I do this? you may ask. First, set up a special place where the dog won’t disturb you and where you can get in a  mindset to seek God. Block out some time, gather the materials you need - a Bible, a place to ‘make notes’ (ipad, sketch book, journal etc), and begin your quest. If you already have an ongoing approach and content, use it! If not turn to Hebrews 10:19-39, read it and write stuff down as you read, and after you’ve made your own notes, answer these questions: 

verses 19-22 tells us to draw near to Jesus. What prevents me from doing this.? Why? What should I do about this barrier?

verses 26-31 talks about fear. Imagine the worst possible world for you. What would it look like? - list ten features of that worst possible world. What can I thank God for? 

verses 37-39 encourages us to care for the soul. What does this mean to me? If I am going to care about my soul, then how do I need to change my life? List five action steps you can take. Pick one. Make yourself a plan to put it into action.

We can end up like this.