I imagine having depth perception is pretty incredible. I have never had it, nor will I ever. I see everything on a flat plane, much like a painting. Intellectually I know that everything has dimension and depth, but I am unable to actually see it. Unless you are like me in this regard, it's a somewhat difficult concept to understand, not because it is a terribly advanced idea but because it is just rather unusual.

When I paint, I have a very difficult time trying to create depth in my art. I struggle with angles and more particularly, I have the most trouble with foreshortening. For anyone who is unfamiliar with the term, foreshortening is a technique used in art to create distance and depth. For example, if I were to draw someone putting his or her hand out, the hand would be drawn larger proportionally to the body to depict it being closer to the person viewing the drawing. To the point, as an object moves away from you, it becomes smaller.

This concept applies to our lives as well. We have these experiences that seem to be nearly catastrophic when we are right in the middle of the storm, but as time passes, those experiences fade into little more than vague memories. They become a tiny dot of paint in what ultimately is a masterpiece quite like Monet's "Waterlilies".

Today I realized that in November it will be five years since I left my ex-husband. FIVE YEARS! I was somewhat shocked at this realization to be honest. I could hardly believe it. In that time so much has changed, all for the better, but it was never an easy road to take. The path was not marked clearly and there were more ebbs and flows than I might have ever thought imaginable had I not lived through it all myself. Today I can sit and write this as I look back on what once was. I vividly remember wrapping myself in blankets to sleep on the floor by the fire because I couldn't afford heat. It wasn't so long ago that the majority of my caloric intake came from a bottle Grey Goose. I can recall going out with a number of different guys searching for validation and significance only to find myself very, very alone and shattered. I remember so well throwing myself 150% into my job, not only out of financial necessity, but because work was the only thing that I could control and that gave me any sense of self-esteem. That storm seemed endless. Every single day for no less than three years was exhausting and filled with turmoil, angst, and sorrow. I remember thinking it would never end and that life would never get easier.

And life will never get easier. That much I know to be true. However, looking back through all I have endured and survived, I know that I have the strength to handle whatever life throws at me. I know now that I can and will get through any and all predicaments that come my way. I have been fortuitous enough to have been blessed with an incredible amount of strength and tenacity, and a spirit that will fight through anything. I choose my battles now more carefully. I seek out peace and often a quiet solitude. But I know now, now that the storm is a small spec of paint in the masterpiece of my life, that I can handle it, whatever it may be.

This is my hope for you all though, that you will have the wisdom to know that whatever may be weighing you down so much now will not last forever, and that you will come out on the other side better for it. You will learn and grow and be amazed at yourself. You will be able to say you have done well and accomplished much. I have no money or worldly success to speak of, but I know that I have in fact succeeded. For those of you in the storm now, wait it out. Soon enough, time will pass and you will be left with a memory.