RUSH COLE FINE ART
~Painting the richness of Life!~
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***"Gallery-Wrapped" describes images on stretched canvas painted on all four sides, making additional framing unnecessary.***
"LADY OF THE ROSES" (Our Lady Of Guadalupe"
36" x 24", acrylic on canvas.
Order Now: Signed Fine Art Print
Regular Price: $199.00 each.
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Order Now: Signed Fine Art Print
Regular Price: $199.00 each.
Free Shipping in continental U.S.
Most people who know me are aware that I'm not into organized religion at all. Heaven knows, I've tried to force myself to fit into that role; however, God made me too much of an independent thinker for that to ever work. That's not to say that I'm not contacted every so often by inhabitants of the divine realm, though.
As a young child, I vividly recall the first time that a being whom I thought of simply as my "God Mother" communicated with me. Nine years young, I'd just been severely beaten and choked unconscious (again) by my birth mom for some grave infraction of her countless laws, such as leaving a speck of food on a fork when washing the dishes. Or something else equally as earth shattering. The insanity was never ending in those years.
I came to lying on the kitchen floor with the mom kicking me and screaming that she wished I were dead, and for me to get up and get my ass to bed. I crawled into the top bunk in the room I shared with three siblings and lay there, silently sobbing and praying to die. That's when I heard the softest, most loving voice ever. "Don't listen to her," it said, "She's wrong, she's so wrong. Just hold on and someday you'll be able to live as you choose."
Twenty years later, I was singing for a living, part of a traveling band that stayed out on the road for a year at a time. Booked as the entertainment in a glamorous supper club in what was once a church in New England, I began singing "The Rose", doing a cover of Bette Midler. All of a sudden, I felt so very weary of life, period. Among all of the challenges I was then facing, my then husband, co-leader of our show band, was also regularly beating me, while having an affair with a female band member and rubbing my face in it.
On top of that, the band's accommodations were in a gaudy cat house inhabited by a dozen "working girls" who mostly plied their trade while the current musicians were at the church/night club. By the time we returned around 3 a.m. each early morning, the girls were sprawled on the red velvet sectional sofas in the mirrored living room, having a drink and winding down. The contrast of bunking in a whorehouse, while singing pop music in a de-consecrated church, never failed to spin my head.
So, there I was, singing The Rose for the first time to a packed Friday night room. Out of nowhere, the emotion welled up in me and I closed my eyes, unable to look at anyone as I continued singing, wanting nothing more than to be free of painful relationships. As was frequently the case, my ribs were wrapped so that I could sing, having been worked over again by hubby. I finished the song and before I could reorient myself, the audience went crazy. My eyes flew open to see that they were all on their feet, cheering and clapping and I suddenly knew that something much bigger than I had touched the people in that non church.
Fast forward several more years to 1996, with me living back in the Midwest. Again, I wanted nothing more than to move to Santa Fe and finally be where I felt at home, instead of ending up where someone else dragged me. A few weeks before actually heading for New Mexico, I called information and requested mailbox rental numbers.
The first one that the operator supplied was on Guadalupe Street, which is where I initially put down roots in the City Different. The name "Guadalupe" meant nothing special to me, not then, other than that it was of Spanish origin. As already stated, I wasn't and have never been, inclined to be of any particular religious persuasion, so I had no clue that Guadalupe was special.
I won't try to describe all of the many, many incidents revolving around the presence of the Divine Mother in my life during the past 29 years that I've been blessed to reside in the Southwest. Just know that She has popped up when I needed Her, and in ways I couldn't have manipulated had I tried.
In the fall of 2011, I decided to look for a house to rent, one that was more suited to my needs. The humble, hand-lettered sign by the road was almost glowing in the dark as I passed it one evening soon after thinking I'd start looking in the classifieds. When I called the number the following day, the owner said the place was open and invited me to come take a look at it. As soon as I climbed the steps and entered the mudroom, I spied the small tile mosaic of Our Lady Of Guadalupe. I've lived here for more than 13 years now.
In mid December of that same year, a friend called to tell me that he'd learned of a truck for sale that he thought might be perfect for me. I climbed into the Dodge Hemi and the first thing I saw was the new air freshener in the shape of Our Lady Of Guadalupe, hanging from the rear view mirror. "Jeesh," I whispered to myself, shaking my head, and then to my friend who was in the passenger seat, "Who's holding the note?"
"Guadalupe Credit Union", he replied, his expression confused when tears filled my eyes, even as I laughed with helpless wonder.
Best truck I've ever had; nevermind that the "door ajar" bell began ringing and wouldn't stop when I gave another friend of mine a lift a couple years later. We were on our way to work on an episode of Longmire and needed to get on the road; however, the bell wouldn't stop ringing. "Lupe!" I shouted, "what's wrong?"
My friend stared at me. "Lupe?" he asked.
I nodded. "Yeah, she's named after Our Lady Of Guadalupe."
He teared up. "Oh, my mom, who just passed a few months ago, absolutely adored Our Lady Of Guadalupe!"
"What was your mom's name?" I inquired, still trying to figure out how to make the bell stop ringing.
"Nancy."
"Nancy," I said, "We hear you...your son's right here."
The bell stopped ringing and has only started again when that particular friend is in mi trucka.
As for Our Lady Of Guadalupe, I've wanted to depict her for years, to create my own version of this brilliant spirit who seems to have taken me under her wing long ago. Perhaps she knew I'd been born to a mother who hated me from inception onward. Whatever the reason for her appearance and continuing "signs" that she is near, I am always beyond grateful.
Especially in these increasingly crazy times! Focusing my attention on expressing my love and gratitude for this astonishing mother figure in my life has served to calm my mind and fill me with peace. During the more than 250 hours of work that have gone into making this iconic image, I have found myself praying that it will also add peace, joy, calmness, healing, and a sense that all is Good if only we choose to look higher and focus on the beauty in our lives.
