I created this small canvas at the start of one summer. I longed for days, and vacations gone by. For me, grieving is not only about missing my husband, but also missing a state of mind and the way I felt in the world when he was still here. I recreated a scene on canvas based on an old photo of a favorite vacation spot. To convey the sense of distance I felt from those perfect days, I painted a bleak shoreline in the foreground. I added depth by using beads and grains of barley that I painted black. In the lower right corner, I placed a crystal stone to symbolize my hope that despite my loss, I needed to be aware of the possibilities I might overlook while focusing only on the past.