Hello all, and happy Friday from Florida! It’s the last day of my vacation, and I’m busily packing my bags and getting ready to begin the long journey home tomorrow morning before dawn. While I’m sorry to be leaving behind the beach and the balmy temperatures, I’m looking forward to getting back to my studio.

Although I spent most of my time this week enjoying the outdoors, I did have some time in the evenings and during intermittent periods of rain to continue working on my “Choose Health” journal. This page is called “Choose Clarity.”

This page was built with layers of patterned, embossed, and handmade papers as well as old book pages, canvas, mica, fabric trim, sewn buttons, and text typed on an antique typewriter. It contains an interesting focal image of an eye surrounded by a letter “C.” The “C” was actually an ornamented drop cap at the beginning of a chapter on ocular anatomy in a beautiful vintage medical textbook I recently purchased on Etsy.

In the last year, I’ve been making a concerted effort to take better care of my vision. Last summer I visited the optometrist for the first time in five years and was issued a new pair of reading glasses. Prior to that point, I’d been lackadaisical in wearing them, often forgetting to put them on altogether. Because I have lenses of different strengths in each eye, this was definitely not a smart choice. Not wearing the glasses while reading or using the computer contributed to my chronic headaches and made my overall vision worse. Since getting my new pair, I’ve been using them regularly and it’s had a positive impact. I’ve also been more diligent in wearing my UV-protectant prescription sunglasses. This week on vacation, I wore them constantly, even when it wasn’t very sunny. As a lifelong athlete who never wore hats or sunglasses on the tennis court, I realize the sun has probably done considerable damage to my eyes over time–but I’ve decided that from now on, it has to stop.

While this page does draw attention to improvements in my ocular health, the concept of clarity mostly addresses my increased awareness of my overall health and acknowledgement of significant changes that must be made in my daily life to improve it.

Here’s to your good health–and to a great weekend! Enjoy !