Paintings!
Limited Edition Hummingbird Paintings (5x5x1.75 inch) by Amos Oaks will be available for viewing and purchase. Available for purchase at The Central Collective Five Year Pop Up Celebration (local pick up includes 3 fried pies of your choice) or online (price includes shipping anywhere in the United States).
No need to wait until October, 18, you can purchase your painting now!
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Maybe you’re wondering what hummingbirds have to do with The Central Collective, but if you know Dale Mackey, Central Collective co-founder who manages the day-to-day operations at the CC, you probably have a guess… (Oh hi! It’s Dale here, writing this post, finding it kind of strange writing about myself in the third person, so why don’t I just write to you directly?)
My fascination with hummingbirds began in earnest one in September of 2019, when I was reading on my porch reading and the hummingbird who’d been drinking from the feeder I had hanging nearby flew right in front of me and hovered in front of my face for a few seconds before flying back to her favorite perching spot in our cherry tree. Before this time, I certainly had an appreciation for these tiny little birds, but seeing this little beauty up close got my attention. I started reading about them and learned that they have an excellent memory— especially for their favorite spots to find nectar-filled flowers, feeders, and even the people who they see filling those feeders. As my interest grew, I went online to look for more hummingbird feeders and found some small ones designed for feeding hummingbirds right from your hand. Just a week or so after I clicked “buy,” my first hummingbird came up to me and helped herself to a drink from the little feeder in my hand. For the rest of the summer, I spent as much time on my front porch as possible, watching the hummingbirds fly from our cherry tree to By the end of summer, she was flying up to me and perching on my finger.
I don’t think it’s hard for most people to understand why I find hummingbirds so enchanting. They’re tiny and iridescent which makes them seem like little real-life fairies, and getting to see any wild creature up close is a pretty magical experience. But aside from their general charming-ness, and perhaps paradoxically since they’re known for being so fast and on-the-go, I credit these little sugar junkies with teaching me how to slow down. For years, I’ve thought some kind of meditation practice would be beneficial for me and my busy brain. But until I had the promise of a ruby-throated fairy coming to visit, I had a hard time prioritizing rest, relaxation or anything like meditation. To get a hummingbird to feed from your hand, you need to spend a lot of time sitting still, breathing evenly, and watching and listening so you don’t startle when they approach. It helps if you spend a lot of time outside right after sunrise and right before sunset when they’re most active. This twice-daily routine of quietly spending time outside became my own little meditative practice, and my most treasured part of the day.
I was already eagerly awaiting the return of my hummingbird friends this spring, and then COVID hit and everything at The Central Collective ground to a screeching halt just as we were gearing up for our busiest season yet. As I (like everyone) had my fair share of anxiety about what the pandemic was going to mean for my small businesses, I also found comfort in slowing down a little and spending more time at home, more time resting and daydreaming and thinking about bigger picture questions versus rushing through a daily to-do list… and of course, I had plenty of time with my hummingbirds. One hummingbird approached me right away this spring and stayed for most of the season. I named her Frankie. Towards the end of the season, my fried Amos Oaks said he had a “little gift” he wanted to drop off for me, and arrived with a beautiful hummingbird painting. It’s now one of my most treasured possessions. As if that wasn’t enough, he offered to do a series of mini hummingbird paintings to help up celebrate and raise funds for the Central Collective’s Five Year Anniversary. This year certainly hasn’t been an easy one for event venues like ours, but like my little hummingbird friends, we are resilient and industrious and always searching for the sweetness we know is all around us.