Just give me the spade and I'll show you what I mean. No! There's no arguing with some seven year olds, especially where sand castles are concerned. A holiday is a chance to try new things, relax, see new places, spend time with family and friends or do nothing at all. Its doing nothing I find most difficult. This morning, doing nothing included getting sunburnt feet playing football on the beach, scraping my shin on barnacles jumping into the sea and finishing the book I had brought in case I got bored, admitting defeat I reached for the sketchbook. I find it very difficult to take a break from painting and sketching helps me relax. Many people have problems winding down on holiday, a fact highlighted recently by a survey showing that an increasing number of people phone the office, read emails and take work on holidays, while some have no choice in the matter others evidently chose to keep on working. We are all creatures of habit and find it difficult to break out of familiar routines. Half way through the holiday I began to relax, listen to the waves, stare into rock pools, and help out with the sandcastles as a familiar daily pattern started to emerge. A long walk in the morning to get the paper and time to read it, afternoons on the beach, while the evenings consisted of a walk along the sand to the hotel and a bowl of chowder. Towards the end of a holiday I was temped to check out the local house prices but living in the Mournes with the mountains, the sea and the long empty beaches what would be the point of moving, the constantly changing weather suits an artist, the only thing missing is the time to appreciate it.
You can contact Eamonn by logging on to www.mccroryart.com