This is the only card in the deck that is not a line drawing and the only one I made with sumi ink. The drawing is based on a flower my friend and neighbor gave me that kept me company in the studio. I decided to try to draw it in honor of her birthday. I love the blackness of sumi ink and I remember feeling like this single stem would be a good candidate to try out this new medium.

The reason it became the “mystery” card is that I can honestly say, I have no idea how I was able to draw this.  You have much less control when using ink and a brush (compared to pencil or pen) and I remember looking at the flower, dipping my brush in ink and then a little in water, and almost in a single movement, the drawing was born.  No touch-ups, no ‘fixing’. When the ink hits the paper, it’s like you can’t turn back.  All I can recall from the movement of my hand was that I was imagining touching the general shapes of the flower while intensely looking at it (almost without even looking down on the paper). In that way, it almost feels like a sculpture to me - like it was sculpted not drawn.

So this was clearly a drawing born of mystery. When I look at it, I still feel wonder about how it came to be. 

I think when we start embracing those moments of mystery, we start to realize the potential power each of us has in our lives. But it’s like that power requires a different kind of attention, one where you really just have to keep showing up - with an open heart and mind and no ego or expectations - and be open to the mysteries that arrive to fill that space in your life.