“Making your mark on the world, makes marks on you.”
In the beginning of the semester I was inspired by a classmate named Josh whoa tattoos all over his body. Each tattoo had a unique and personal feeling. I am not allowed to get tattoos because my religion prohibits it. For my final, I made a painting to show what I would put on my own back if I could get tattoos.
Birds are seen as messengers of the gods. They serve as signs for people looking and maybe not looking for answers. My family of 6 means the world to me, every time I’m in trouble or am confused I look back to my family, I look back at them for support and when I question my purpose I look at them. Six birds, different colors, represents my strong family.
Roses symbolize innocence and truth, they symbolize love and they are an expression of care. I used a rose not to signify any specific relationship but to represent my friends altogether, who I truly love. Roses also symbolize truth. In Ancient Rome a wild rose would be placed on the door of a room where secrets where discussed. Love and truth go hand in hand and that is a big truth to me.
“The key to happiness” is a commonly used phrase. Everyone seems to connect to their own key, thinking something would make them happy. My key used to be looking into the future, never living in the now. I worked on myself a lot to live in the now and my key to happiness became just being happy where I am, instead of looking into the future. This idea truly impacts the way I look at life now. A key also symbolizes freedom, and I have received a freedom of comfort by letting go of worrying about the future.
Wings are often associated with elevation, freedom and aspiration. Angels are usually associated with wings which symbolizes guidance and protection, being inspired. My life continue to inspires me, every morning I wake up, every prayer, everything physical action becomes inspiring to me.
The Hebrew language is so important to me and the people around me. Hebrew is a delicate language, filled with beautifully flowing words that tickle my ears when I hear them. Hebrew is my culture, my history, my present and my future. I believe that names are windows into the soul. Ayelet Rachel, is my Hebrew name. Ayelet means morning star, it is a light that shines over the world spreading pleasantries, ayelets have a tendency to desire to enjoy opportunities that allow them to be creative and act independently. The name Rachel is one of my foremothers, she was kind and loved and had a serious desire to understand the heart and mind of everyone. Rachel has a strong ability to create warmth in an environment. I feel very connected and inspired by these two names every day.
Trees have their roots deeply imbedded in the ground, this allows them to move freely above ground, this makes them stable. Trees are also the ultimate symbol of the cycle of life, being that everything on the trees keep renewing. The cycle of life shows future and potential stability. I wanted to include trees because the idea of the future is extremely important to me, and it drives me to be doing most of the things that I do.
A butterfly symbolizes elegance, grace, tenderness and beautiful. Butterflies are the essence and embodiment, of femininity. Butterflies also embody spiritual growth because of the transformation from a caterpillar to a butterfly. the butterfly learns to live in its new life and adapts so well, and through my memories and my future I try to strive to be all of these things.
