Art can speak a thousand words

Greg Olsen is one of my all time favorite artists and it is my life long quest to little by little collect his artwork. It is soooo beautiful!!!


It was December 2007 and I was last minute Christmas shopping at Costco. When I first walked in the store I saw that there was an art exhibit going on. Nothing unusual for Costco, as you know they always have exhibits and displays, and like many times before I enjoyed the beauty of the art in passing as I was in a hurry to get in and out of there. As I walked by the display there was a picture that caught my eye. I stopped dead in my tracks. There was the most beautiful picture of Jesus holding the hand of a little mixed black girl. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. My heart started beating fast and tears started welling up in my eyes. As I stood there full of emotion looking at this picture I felt like I was staring at my Maya holding Jesus's hand. As a new mother I was already experiencing the emotions of feeling inadequate, blessed, scared, excited, and overwhelmed at teaching and leading Maya throughout her life. I pleaded with Heavenly Father often in prayer to please help me be the kind of mother that will teach Maya to know that her Father in heaven and Jesus are ALWAYS there for her. That she won't ever be alone. That even though her mother had made big mistakes in her life, that she overcame those hard times in life and grew, all because of her Savior, Jesus Christ and his love.


I had to get this picture for Maya! I just had to! I was already done shopping for her and this picture wasn't cheap, but I knew that this picture was meant for me. It was meant for Maya. There I was standing in line with my picture when Greg Olsen himself was sitting there at a table signing the pictures and leaving notes. I dashed over to the table and asked him, "what inspired this picture?" I had to know! He went on to tell me that he had a dear friend who had a daughter that had a babygirl who was a mixed little girl and she asked him why he didn't have any art of Jesus with black (mixed) kids and that she wanted a picture of Jesus like this for her daughter. Wasting no time I told him my life story in about 5 minutes (the shortened and to the point version) and that he didn't know it yet, but that this picture was for me! It was for my daughter! That when I saw that picture on that crazy, cold December afternoon running through Costco, that all was right with the world. I knew that Maya would always know that Jesus walks hand in hand with all of his children. He will always be there for her. Always. And this picture also gave me that assurance that as her mother, I too know that he will always be there for me, to lead and guide me to intern raise her up in the gospel to know these truths!



This picture now hangs in Maya's room with a note from her mother on the back of it. Someday when she is old enough she will understand more what this picture means and I know it will be a treasure to her, but for now, it is the picture that she looks to right before she goes to bed and says ever so sweetly, " Jesus and My My."