Curious Things Around the House #6

This is a painting titled ‘Woman holding Flowers”
It was painted by a patient when I was just out of residency. She gave it as payment for her treatment. She had schizophrenia. She was trying very hard not only to keep the voice down in her head but to live as an artist. It was her passion, although at the time I knew her it was not her livelihood. She worked in a restaurant washing dishes.
If you look long enough you can see the outline of a person holding what looks like brown eyed Susans (Rudbekia). There are two small dots for eyes; the yellow streaks at the top are the hair.
Above and behind the eyes next to the bit of turquoise, is a plastic gem glued into the canvas. I believe it is where the woman’s soul is supposed to originate.

Someone does not like this painting, but I am rather fond of it.

I’ve often wondered what happened to her; where is she now and how is she doing. That is the trouble of ex patients. They don’t drop you notes 5-10 years later to tell you how they are, and I can not go looking for them. I only hope that what encounter I had with them made some sort of positive difference in their lives.
Her gift of art remains long after the others who merely paid their bill with money.