Change touches all of us: good change, hard change, the kind we chose and the kind that chose us. And yet most people resist it. We hold on to what is familiar, hoping that if we wait long enough, things will return to the way they were.
They rarely do. And somewhere beneath the resistance, we already know that. It's a feeling I've thought a lot about as an abstract painter, and one I tried to put into paint with Undertow.
How Change Really Works
Change has a way of moving us before we are ready. That is the nature of an undertow: not a wave you can see coming, but a current beneath the surface, already pulling you somewhere new before you've decided to go.
Most of us spend enormous energy fighting that pull. We mistake stillness for safety. We stay in the unfinished, the uncertain, the in-between, not because it feels good, but because it feels known.
But the undertow doesn't stop. And eventually, something shifts.
What Happens When We Stop Fighting It
When we finally stop resisting and choose to accept the new version of ourselves that is emerging, something shifts. There is a peace that comes with that acceptance, and with it, a kind of radiance. Not because the change was easy, but because you made peace with it. You stepped into who you were becoming, and you owned it.
That is not weakness. That is growth. And it is the only way we truly move forward.
Why Visual Anchors Matter
Accepting change is one thing. Staying committed to the new version of yourself is another.
That is where a visual anchor comes in. Not a motivational quote that fades into the background. Not a goal on a sticky note. Something that holds the feeling, the decision you made to stop fighting and start becoming, so that on the hard days, when the next wave of change arrives, you have something on your wall that says: Change is coming. It always is. And I am ready for it.
Abstract art is especially powerful for this. Without literal imagery to pin the meaning down, it holds space for whatever you bring to it. It grows with you. It means what you need it to mean, every time you look at it.
Undertow: A Painting About Becoming
Undertow is my attempt to capture that experience in paint, specifically in acrylic on canvas, layered with texture and pearl finish.
The sweeping arcs represent life's current, the force that moves us whether we are ready or not. Up close, the rough texture reflects how change feels at first: uneven, uncomfortable, unresolved. And threaded throughout, pearl paint catches the light differently depending on where you stand, a shimmer that only reveals itself once you start moving.
That is what this painting is about. Not the arrival. The becoming.
Undertow is available as a limited edition giclée print in three sizes, a way to bring that commitment to change into your space and keep it visible.
Final Thoughts
Change touches all of us, whether we welcome it or not. Most resist it. Some fight it for years. But there is something that happens when you finally stop resisting and simply accept the new version of yourself that is emerging: a kind of peace, and with it, a quiet radiance. Not because the change was easy, but because you made it through, and you chose to embrace who you became on the other side.
That is what Undertow is about. And that is what I hope it becomes for you: a visual anchor on your wall that reminds you, in those hard seasons, that change is normal, growth requires it, and the only way through is to roll with it.
