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Mari,
Your post reminded me of something I experienced three years ago. I attended a week-long watercolor workshop and met an amazing woman. She was in her thirties and learning how to paint. Her name is Gail and she had suffered what I think would have conquered most people. She had suffered a particularly deadly form of viral pneumonia of which the after-effects are gangrene. She had both arms and legs amputated to save her life from the deadly disease. After recovering from this she discovered she had breast cancer and survived that along with chemo.
She was totally unassuming, drove her own truck, carried all of her own supplies on field trips and also had a full time job. Her husband had abandoned her after this terrible tragedy because he could not deal with it. She forgave him. She also liked to make and serve coffee for the group in the afternoon. The instructor Judi Betts was so impressed with her, she asked her if she would be willing to share with other handicapped people who would like to study art.
Her love of painting was so genuine and meant so much to her. Last year I saw an article in the paper announcing the opening of her show at a gallery. She is doing just fine.
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