"Thirst by the River Flow"

(detail)

My dentist has a calming waiting lounge. We sit amongst elegant living bamboo, art of the moon and sun, fresh trickling water soothing our senses. On the far wall are contemporary magazines to distract the jumpy mind. To the right is a large abstract print that gives off the sense of lightness, airiness, an uplift of the soul.

But I have been sitting here too long, waiting for my doctor who is behind in her schedule. I venture up to the abstract, look closely at the rough rectangular shapes that loosely line the lower edge of the airy space. Are these something specific? I turn my head sideways. An animal head? Oh... it's a horse head... and body. A dead horse. And next to it another dead horse. And a third. And here is one that is almost dead and here is one that is alive but suffering. And up there, in that lovely space of freedom, a heroic horse, riding off to war, proud and strong. And now I see, in the vaporously abstract background, a spirit horse, riding swiftly, upwards and away.

I sit back down and listen to the flowing water. It is all here in this small dentist lounge. Life. And that means death. And all that is in between and beyond. Forever flowing forward. Quenching our thirst for rejuvenation.