Within Reach

48” x 36” | Oil on Canvas

Sometimes reaching a goal gives us something even more valuable than the thing we were reaching for.

Within Reach is about discovering what we are capable of through determination, hard work, and the willingness to find a way, even when what we have to work with is far from perfect.

Artwork Story

A girl leans from a tiny paper boat toward an enormous whale rising from the ocean. The boat is fragile. It may not be what she would have chosen for the journey, but it is what she has and somehow, she got herself here.

That is what this painting means to me. The whale is the goal, but reaching it isn't the most important part. The journey has given her something she didn't have when she started: proof of what she is capable of.

There will always be things that seem too difficult, too distant, or beyond what we think we can do. We may not have the ideal circumstances, enough help, or even know exactly how we're going to get there. But every time we work toward something difficult and find our own way through, we carry that accomplishment with us.

The next goal may be just as enormous. But this time, we know something about ourselves that we didn't know before: I will find a way.