Some of you may know that I've been working on a new feather painting of a butterfly and a ladybug. This was a special trade I was doing with a family who raises pet birds. They asked to send me some feathers in exchange for a feather painting. I don't normally take trades like this, but this one was special. I'd like to share with you the story behind this painting.

However, the story does not have a happy ending. Please read what I have to say and if you would like to help with a card project I'll explain at the end, I would greatly appreciate your contribution.

Allow me to share some excerpts from my emails with Kimberly Sturman, who found my website when searching for an artist to help inspire her little girl, Kayla, seen below:



These are the emails from Kimberly:

October 11th:
"First off I found your site and you are an amazing artist!! With that said I wish I could afford some of your pieces. So I have a question for you.... I breed parrots. If I was to send you a box of parrot feathers of all kinds for you to pick and choose to use with and in your art would you be willing to paint a feather for my family?

I have a family of four which is me the hubby and two daughters age 12 and 6. My six year old is very much into the art world. She draws and colors and doodles and writes and oh lord the paper she goes through...LOL... Anyhooo I just thought I would ask. ...If your not interested I understand.
Take care
Kimberly"



October 12th:
"Hi Kristan,
Thank you so much for writing me back so fast! What I am mainly wanting is something for my littlest one. She is 6 and very much into art. To give you a small short background on the little booger ..... I won't keep you long I promise...LOL...

Her name is Makaela, she is six yrs old. She is my youngest of two daughters. She is a very special child! I admit she is very spoiled by all of us including my oldest daughter. She is not suppose to be with us. Very hard pregnancy but in the end much worth it.
She is sick (no I am not trying to make you feel sorry because she is well loved and very strong hearted but I do know how it sounds and trust me its not that way)

She has an auto immune disorder that they have not been able to pin point as of yet. She has a lot of pain and a lot of fevers. So with her staying sick all the time she spends a lot of time inside so she had a lot of time to draw and paint and all that good stuff. She became pretty good at it but that could just be the momma in me.....LOL....So I try to surround her with art things......This feather if you choose to paint one for us would be an amazing addition to our collection and treasured by us.

To tell you a little bit about us....
My husband is a Sgt in the US army, he has 9 more years till retirment...YAY...HAHA
I am a disabled stay at home mom of two wonderful little girls! We are both 33 yrs old.....
our girls Haven and Kayla are 12 and 6. We breed birds of all kinds. They live in an outdoor closed in aviary and enjoy the sunshine and rain and all the other "outdoor" things that come along with it...

We also have three dogs a lab\rotti mix, a pekingese, and a chihuahua....
...HAHA...sorry I know I ramble on a bit....
kimberly



October 13th:
"Hi Kristan!!
Thank you so so much for thinking of painting her one! It means A LOT TO me!!
My husband is away and everything always goes nuts when he is gone. His african grey throws a fit every time he leaves too and gives me a hard time and tries to bite me too! You will hear her every day sitting out there going "DAN OH DAAAANNNNNN" Then her mate will go "WHAT"......its kinda funny the first couple times you hear it but then after the first 20 or 30 times it gets kinda on your nerves....LOL.....anyhoooo

You asked me what I would want on it........I hope it is not to much to ask but could you do a lady bug and a butterfly together on one feather? The reason for this is Kayla my little one is our lady bug and Haven is our butterfly. I collect small things here and there for them of the lady bugs and butterflies so they have a special meaning to us.


Your paintings are so beautiful!!! The details in them are amazing, You are a very talented young lady!!
anyhooo I better hush. Please let me know if I left anything out ok
TTYL
Kimberly"



October 14th:
Hi Kristan,
I will send you out some feathers today. Thank you so much for doing this! It really means a lot to me. I try to do everything I can to make sure she is surrounded by art. She really is an amazing little girl. She loves to draw and paint and color.

I just looked through your gallery again and OMG are you talented!!! If you could pick one thing out that your parents nurtured with your art what would it be? Did they hang up your drawings from when you was little or buy you crayons every time you go to the store? I mean what can I do to nurture that artist in her? She spends a lot of time inside with being sick so she does spend a lot of time drawing and such....

..I showed her your site yesterday so she has been robbing the nests outside and trying to paint feathers. She cannot figure out how to get the paint to stay where she wants it.......LOL.....she is a good kid....I just worry is all...
anyhoooo ok I am babbling and I am so sorry.......Thank you again
Kimberly



October 31st:
"Hi Kristan,
Sorry I have not been in touch to tell you what was going on over this way. My aviary got broken into and half my birds killed by some lunatic....
I do have the feathers right here to send you....I will try to get them out today.I am looking forward to seeing the ladybug and butterfly......
Talk to you later on
Kimberly"



October 31st:
Hi again.
We are not sure who the man is that killed them. He also got caught peeping in my daughters window.
It was devastating to say the least, finding all of them dead the way we did.
I appreciate you remembering me
Kimberly



November 13th:
"Hey Kristan,
If you do not mind I would like the lady bug and butterfly separate (on separate feathers BUT linked together to make one piece. Does that make sense?) Then again I might like it so much I say to heck with the girls and keep it all for myself.....HEHE That is so bad of me!

I have been meaning to ask you if you would write a small letter/note to Kayla (my little artist) basically saying to follow her dreams with her art and to always be herself kinda thing but you know in your own words......If that is to much to ask please just let me know. I do not want to over step my boundaries here.

THank you so much for doing this for Kayla. My little bug she has such a hard time in life. I have never understood why a child could be made to suffer and all these evil monsters run lose without a health care in the world!!
OK rambling again sorry.....
I will talk to you later on.
Big hugs
Kimberly"



I finished Kimberly's feather painting on Wednesday November the 18th. I wrote her an email, excited for her to see the feather painting. I received the following email in response.



November 19th (today):
"Kristan,
I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news. This is Dan. I am having to answer my wife's mail and let everyone know that she passed away on the 15th. it is killing me to do this but i have to let the people she knows know that it happened.
Dan"



The news was devastating to say the least. After having been talking to Kimberly on a regular basis and getting to know her, it's hard to believe she's gone so suddenly. This family has been through enough lately, from the youngest daughter's health complications to the recent murders of their pets and now the death of this young mom. I finished the painting just a few days too late for her to have seen it. I will be sending the painting to them soon and I will keep my promise of sending Kayla (the aspiring young artist) a note of inspiration. But can it be more than that?

That's where you guys come in! If anyone is interested, I will be putting together a large card for the entire family. Text, photos, drawings and any other artwork made for the family would be greatly appreciated and would be compiled into a collage, then printed out to be sent to them along with their feather painting. They don't have to be large or lengthy, but just something that might help lift their spirits.

If you would like to make a contribution, please have it to me by the end of next week (Friday night: the 27th of November) by sending a note to me with your text or a link to your picture. I think that will be enough time to put together this project so that I can make sure it gets back to the Sturmans soon.

Nothing can take away what has happened to them, but I think any friendly gesture that helps them through their tragedy, even if it's a little bit, is worth it.

Thank you to those who took the time to read this. I know it's a lot to read. Thank you even more to those of you who would like to help with my project. It means a lot.

Kayla's Painting: