Who I Am

Thank you for visiting denisetrach.com!

Several years ago, after a lifetime of writing, and almost 20 years of teaching (at the time), I encountered some difficult obstacles in my life, and I felt lost. Reading about meditation, studying Buddhism and embracing facets of all religions, led me to art as meditation. Meditating in the traditional sense did not work for me; I constantly revised grocery lists, relived perceived injustices against me or people I cared about, perseverated on how I was unkind...My mind did not rest. But it did when I was painting or drawing. 

Calm. Focus. Flow. Breath. Mindfulness. All of this occurred when I doodled or painted or drew. And this is how my visual art began. With the encouragement of several friends, I donated a piece of art to a breast cancer benefit, and from there, people began to request and buy my work. I scrambled to have a business card; I needed a brand!

I tried to take everything on at once: mothering, wifing (I know that's not a word), teaching, painting, posting on social media, running my own website (not this one), creating a platform for an online seller's shop, marketing...and I burnt out. And subsequently, I shut everything down. And with Covid, I felt extra unsettled. Enter more intense mindfulness practice. Being present in the moment. 

But I am back with a brand new website that will feature art that I make and a blog (hence: Whimsy & Wisdom).

I hope you will enjoy this journey with me.  And if you don't, I hope that you don't tell me about it. 

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xo