Katy Rose Collection: Art, Words
Where Joy Really Is
Life rapidly shifted in the course of 12 months. A move took me from an exciting job in a New York City high-rise, full of events and autonomy and visible deliverables, to this… this living room floor hundreds of miles away.
I sat there with my two babies in the dated rental house. The next big event on my calendar was nap time.
I had chosen this career change and, truly, felt intense gratitude for the chance to be home with our children, but that didn’t exempt me from bouts of loneliness and exhaustion that come with the job. And what felt like so little to show for all my exertion!
But then, right there on the floor, something hit me. “God, if in your presence is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11), then joy can be here, even in this.” True, deep, exhilarating joy! It felt like a revelation. Joy was not dependent on my circumstance, but on the Lord’s presence. Incredible.
Changing Diapers? Playing peek-a-boo? Washing dishes? Be my vision, Lord. Captivate me with your work all around me, that I might not be captive to others' approval or validation.
In the end, it’s joy I’m really after, what we’re all after, and it’s right here with You.
It was a gift to write A Liturgy for Unseen Labor for the new Every Moment Holy III based on old journal entries and notes jotted down during those formative years.
The full prayer, along with prayers by many others, can be found here. I think you will really love the book.
An excerpt:
Nothing is unknown to you, Lord, and you know
that my labors often go unrecognized.
At times, this has disheartened me.
Yet this I believe: to work is a valuable gift.
You’ve placed me here with an opportunity
to tend these tasks for your glory
and for the good of your children.
May I not be blind to the beauty before me.
Be thou my vision, Lord.
For in your sight the task at hand becomes an act of worship.
Holy Spirit, meet me in this work
with the power of your presence, for in your
presence is the fullness of joy.
Yes, there may be joy here also, even in this.
How much of your work, O God, is
unnoticed? How often do I neglect to thank you?
Indeed, the world revolves around your unseen acts.
Yet despite our lack of acknowledgement, you
are constant in care and unceasing in service.
May I humbly follow this pattern.
As I go about my work today,
give me eyes to see you at work in the world.
Establish the work of my
hands, not for my name but for yours,
that these labors might bring
blessing from trial,
peace from chaos,
justice from abuse,
and beauty from its lack.
I give you my work as an offering. Do with it as you will.
For my deepest satisfaction comes not from
being seen by others, but from being
profoundly and forever seen
and known by you.
How To Give the Gift of a Memory (Custom Sketches Now Open!)
A few years before my grandfather died, he offered to pay willing grandchildren to research our family tree. I was assigned the branch of my great-grandmother and quickly became addicted to the project. After a year or so I presented to my grandfather the compiled information, all bound in a nice album. What a great memory – sitting with him, flipping through the fascinating stories and photos.
As you might imagine, the research brought up all kinds of interesting things, and like every family line, we’ve got the good and the bad. Included among those were an author of the United States Constitution, the first Supreme Court Justice, and a U.S. President from the last 15 years. We had struggling orphans, indomitable Red Cross volunteers, sailors, lawyers, and musicians.
The common thread is our blood relation to an indentured servant from France.
In the early 1600’s, French Protestants faced severe persecution and this ancestor of mine, a French Huguenot (Protestant) in his mid-twenties, had to get out. He became an indentured servant, allowing him to gain passage to the British Colony of Maryland.
After his indentured seven years ended, he was eventually able to buy land, naming it after his home village in France. And last week I stood there, back in that little French town where he was born to Nicola and Thomas close to 400 years ago.
My relatives still live in Maryland after all these years, but it was my grandfather who migrated west to follow the girl he loved after fighting in WWII. They married in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
How brilliant was it of him to get his grandchildren on board this way? All of us who participated feel a deep connection with the information now, which I’m sure was his hope.
I sketched this little street from the town for my parents, and have it available as a digital download in my shop. Just purchase, print, and pop into a frame for a little reminder to history, family, and connecting to the stories that shape us.
Plus, check available spots below if you’d like to commission your own drawing!
Custom Sketch Booking
the Coastal Print Collection - Coming October 5th!
COASTAL PRINT COLLECTION
releasing October 5, 2023
I’m so delighted to offer this collection in prints. These oil paintings were originally released two years ago as the Sea Hymn collection, inspired by the East Coast of the United States, as well as moving lyrics from hymns that point to God’s faithfulness in the midst of our stormy seas.
To accompany the new prints, I’ve also selected additional prints from my current shop that would coordinate beautifully for a gallery wall, or simply within the same room. Below are a few ideas.
Thank you for your kind and generous support. See you Thursday!
