Title: When Life Gives you Oranges
Artist Statement:
This is an excerpt from a blog post Carly made for this painting in 2021:
Let me tell ya about this painting. I had just turned 18 and went to teach English to little kids in Ukraine. A few months in, I woke up one day with the darkest feeling surrounding me. I remember thinking that this didn’t feel like depression or anxiety. It just felt dark. Like evil. Scary intrusive awful thoughts suddenly flooded my brain. I kept thinking, “These thoughts are not my own.”
By the third day of this intense vile heaviness, I couldn’t take it anymore. I got to my classroom early that day and fell on my knees bawling. I prayed my heart out that whatever was surrounding me would leave. I thought, “Christ can make this disappear.” And when I said Amen, I felt just as horrible as I did when I began.
Doubts about God and his power came flooding in.
In that moment of deep anguish, a beautiful 25 year old Ukrainian woman who worked at the front desk of the school walked. She had long brown hair and a sweet smile. In broken English she held out her hands and said, “I brought you an orange.”
In that instance, the darkness left. No, actually, it fled. It was as if this small act of love made it impossible for any evil spirit to surround me. I burst out in tears. She asked me what was wrong not knowing that everything was right again. I’ll never forget Anya and the power that that act had on the energy around me.
By the way, I opened the orange and it was rotten inside. I smiled and reflected that acts of service might look like giving rotten fruit to someone, but that doesn’t take away it’s power and love.
My husband symbolism with this painting: ORANGES REMIND ME THAT GOD EXISTS. Ok but think about it. They are the coolest fruit. They come in a waterproof package that is biodegradable. You don't need tools to open it up, just your fingers. They come PRE SLICED. They grow year round. And they are so sweet yet so good for you. This is evidence of God. He is in the simple complex things all around us.
Printed on #100 matte
Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
Giclée printing quality
All prints fit into standard frames
Shipping: Typical turn-around time is 7-14 business days. The most common turnaround time for orders to ship is 2-5 days.
Each print is safely packaged in a sealed clear plastic sleeve
Sizes 5x7", 8x10", and 11x14" arrive in flat, cardboard envelopes and large sizes arrive in sturdy shipping tubes.