OMG what a week!
LOL, I know I started my last newsletter with the same intro, but what can I say, it's been another amazing week!
I've spotted our awesome Mayor, John Tory himself sporting my Toronto Pride mask all over the city with pride (pics below), celebrated an amazing birthday on Sunday, and am now gearing up to make another donation of 60 masks this Monday which really cheers me up.
Here are a few Mayor sightings! Any Raptors fans out there?
The month of June is always a mixed bag of emotions for me to start with, because first it's my birthday, then it's Father's Day, which is ALWAYS extremely hard for me, having lost my dad 6 years ago on June 24th. Needless to say, even though I try to be present and optimistic those last three weeks of June, I am typically counting the hours until the month is done.
This June is a little different tho. I feel good, and strong, and I am hoping this feeling will last.
It feels different because I can feel my dad in Heaven beaming with pride at my accomplishments in the last few weeks and supporting me every step of the way.
What a lot of you don't know is that my dad was my first art fan. From day one.
I remember him telling me very early on when I just started painting at 35 years old:
"Nadia, you have true talent. I don't think you realize how hard it is for people to paint abstract. Abstract is not something you can learn easily. It's in you or it's not".
And my father studied Fine Arts and was a great artist himself. So hearing him say this had a HUGE impact on me.
I went from thinking "Any 5 year old can do better than me" to "Oh ok, yes, I may be an artist, and I may have the eye."
I would send him photos of EVERY SINGLE BRUSH STROKE I painted on a daily basis and he would send me back feedback right away. It often just said:
"WOW! That's beautiful, just keep having fun and exploring".
We truly bonded over my art.
When he passed, no more than a few years after I started painting, I lost my #1 fan. My go to Art person.
I also lost 30 lbs within a month from the shock and grief.
I think if he were here today and I said "DAD!!! I MET THE MAYOR OF TORONTO AND HE LOVES MY WORK!" my dad would calmly say "Well of course he does. Why would you expect any less"...
Sharing all of this personal history with you leads me to this: I haven't celebrated Father's Day in 6 years, let alone sent a Father's Day newsletter, but this year I feel enthusiastic about celebrating ALL Dads.
And because I know Dads love sporting my gear, I've decided to showcase here a small collection of my top sellers to hopefully be part of your Father's Day celebrations and make your families smile.
Click HERE to view the collection.
Also enjoy FREE SHIPPING Canada wide on the products featured below when you use code LOVEDAD TODAY AND TOMORROW at checkout.
Sending you love and light, stay well, and catch you next week!
Nadia