Dawn

To care for encaustic artwork, avoid extreme temperatures (both hot and cold), direct sunlight, and moisture. A natural "bloom" or cloudiness is normal and can be restored by gently buffing the surface with a clean, lint-free cloth. Avoid framing under glass, but you can cover the artwork with a protective sheet like wax paper or Glassine for transport or storage. 

Little Bird woke shivering from the Cold. Alone beneath the Rising Moon, the silver light draped over the landscape and the salt pan was ablaze as the salt crystals magnified the light a hundredfold. Little Bird felt as if the light of the Moon was burning through her body, swallowing her up to leave only a faint silver outline of the bird she used to be. “How long has it been?” she asked Herself, “Is it Time?” 

She had flown far, far, far from Home by now. Her eyes were over-full and she needed to rest from this Strange Relentless Beauty. Empty and undone, she was starting to Abandon what She Was Not. Much later, flashbacks to these days of Freedom and Isolation would suddenly overwhelm her as she caught up with Herself. Untethered and falling still, Family was calling and Mother Bird was nearing The End. 

Little Bird shivered in the icy pre-dawn air. She was dreading The Return. Gathering up her Courage she chirped out a Dawn Chorus to Lift Her Spirits. The Greatest Adventures are taken in the Dark. Alone. With no promise of Salvation. She Surrendered to Responsibility, knowing full well this would Undo much of the Good Work she had done.

Little Bird shook out her feathers and Flew Off towards the Night. Returning to the Family Home to Do What She Could. Deep Responsibility Clawed at her. Deep Love Smothered and Overwhelmed her. Mother could not go gently and Little Bird could be nowhere else. She would be Marked by her Mother’s Journey. Then and Now and Forever More.