Past In Ashes / Paintings

What do you do with years worth of diaries that contain the most tumultuous times of your life?

This was my conundrum. I didn’t want to keep them. They had done their job and now it was time to let go. But how? Throw them away? Shred them? Burn them? I opted for the last one, with a twist.

Page by page I burnt my diaries in a ceramic pot. When I was done, I brought out a paintbrush, a hard canvas and some white paint. First, I dipped the brush in white paint, then I dipped the brush in the ashes of my diaries. I covered the whole canvas in ash and paint, with no preconceived idea as to how.

When I reached the bottom of the pile of ashes, rather than just ash, my brush picked up an unburned piece of paper. I didn’t notice until the brush deposited it in the middle of the canvas. It was my last stroke with the brush. 2216.

I know the original meaning of 2216, but suddenly it took on a whole new life

Just like mine.