Original watercolor on watercolor canvas painting, depicting a kitten behind a brick wall. "Behind the Brick Wall" is a somewhat surreal vision of a place we’ve all been from time to time - hiding behind a self-created fortress. We place ourselves there usually because of extreme emotional distress caused by painful life experiences. In seeking to protect ourselves from more of the same, we build our wall, one brick at a time, often leaving a tiny hole or two, enabling us to peek out and catch glimpses of the world passing by. At some point, when we feel safe enough, we begin to chip away at the wall we’ve built and eventually we emerge back into life. We’ve grown older and wiser, and we may exhibit extra cautiousness. But we must come out - we can’t stay behind the wall forever. Because, you see, when we keep out the bad, we also keep out all of the goodness, joy and happiness life offers. And to miss out on the many wonderful experiences life can bring us would truly be a shame.