Posted by ateliersisk | January 17, 2020
Saint Francis of Assisi
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2542450E-F6ED-440E-8E54-393BE9BA4AD8.jpeg)
This image of a beloved saint and a personal hero might never have been undertaken but for a winter respite with my students, who have long modeled for me the loving-kindness of Francis.
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/360D4811-D318-456F-9DE7-4774AF4EFB11.jpeg)
Why hummingbirds? Some years ago, I was working in a Vermont greenhouse and nursery wherein a sweet colleague and I rescued ruby-throated hummingbirds. They would become caught in spider webs; the silk was too strong for their wings, and our little friends would emit panicked cries from the ceilings. So, my colleague and I spotted each other on precariously positioned ladders, gently parted silk from feathers, and marveled at the weightlessness of the creatures until they rallied and flew from our hands. After a batch of rescues on a very warm day, I was sweeping out the greenhouse and paused to rest, closing my eyes and leaning on the broom for support. The air near my face changed, and I slowly opened my eyes to find four male hummingbirds hovering before me. We made eye contact for long seconds and I felt a current of pure, loving gratitude pass between us. I am convinced that they fully knew we’d risked the climbs to help them in genuine care and reverence – indeed, they had now re-entered the environment of their trauma to communicate it – and this image of multiple, fiercely territorial birds in a moment of harmony has remained with me. In addition, hummingbirds are often seen as symbols of joy and their wings beat in the shape of infinity, which makes them a lovely fit for the subject. A fifth bird protected between the hands completes a reference to the wounds of Christ.
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/B4218B7B-A698-40C6-B94A-EB5E5237358D-1024x1024.jpeg)
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/C32CB9AE-134F-4C72-8353-EBC4A3511DAA-1024x1024.jpeg)
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/154E54E4-5097-412D-A737-8407C8E9EEE8-1024x813.jpeg)
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/2D8BDF51-650E-4385-B9C9-A7C723C9FCC0-1024x1024.jpeg)
![](https://ateliersisk.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/31A9D2F4-0D69-40FD-8096-375A5C301092-727x1024.jpeg)