Laura Erwin
An artist, a grandmother, a painting, and an art gallery: mix them together and you have a recipe for some exceptional, inspirational, and flavorsome soul food.
When Harriet entered through the glass door of a local art gallery, little did she know that the fabric of her being would soon change – dramatically. Harriet, a successful business woman, is mysteriously drawn to the red shoes that are in a painting she discovers in the gallery. The woman’s fixation with the shoes surprisingly transports her into a world of metaphors, which consistently, and patiently, knock on her door of inner truth. But will she answer? Through the art of storytelling by the artist, Harriet vicariously experiences the bands of truth that stem from other individuals, like herself, that also connected strongly with the painting. Their stories (based on the images in the painting) mirror truths in her life. As the artist shares tale after colorful tale, Harriet struggles internally with her own emotional war on life, love, and happiness.
Here’s an idea: Light a candle, get a drink, get comfortable, and get ready for a magical whirl on an emotional, sensual, and spiritual ride of unearthly proportions. The Red Shoes are walking your way!
A review:
"Visually rich and captivating, The Red Shoes is a multi-layered emotionally rewarding read. The author both leads and challenges us to participate in the journey her characters take as they become one with the painting, The Red Shoes. Cutting across generations to basic truths about men, women, relationships, and the world in which we live, this is a book to cherish and share."
Sandy Medearis
Artist, photographer
Editor of "The Beam" newsletter
Laura Erwin, a native to Northern California, currently resides in San Jose. One of ten children, her love for stories started at a very young age. Her mother, being an artist herself, created plays during the holidays for their relatives, and each one of her children participated as an actor and/or singer. To keep themselves occupied, Laura and her siblings would craft their own plays. The creativity was boundless and continues through her writings and illustrations.
In addition to The Red Shoes, she has written and illustrated a children’s book, entitled There Is a Monster In My Closet! which is available through her website peetysworld.com.
If you stare at the painting long enough, a silhouette appears.
It is an apparition of a beautiful young woman standing in the crimson-colored shoes. Her hair is luxuriously long and thick, and moves sensuously around her like the wings of an eagle in a slow, playful flight. Her whole being sways gently in concert with the icy breeze that dances around her, as well as through her.
She is sad, full of sorrow, and shivers in her aloneness, all the while clinging desperately to the bright red shoes. The shoes seem to blaze fiercely against the cold, hard glistening snow. The shoes blaze so much that by rights the snow should melt from their mere presence.
The woman dares not look at the scenery behind her. She chooses to avoid that brilliant, blue sky and the lush, magnificent trees. The trees make her weak, vulnerable. She attempts periodically to walk away in the red shoes, but she is stuck, immobile, frozen like the snow beneath her.
2nd Preview: first part of Chapter 3, illumination, pages 40-43
A magnificent, white eagle swoops down towards the earth. With his sharp and treacherous claws extended, he is ready to capture the prey that sits peacefully on the snow.
The eagle reaches its prey, brushes it lightly with the tips of his claws, and immediately retracts. It screeches as if being burnt from hot coals.
What was thought of as food is actually an inanimate object. The object glistens in the snow mirroring the sun’s bright reflection.
The eagle spreads its massive wings and circles the sky. It gives out a loud disappointing cry, and then flies into the large tree which is a short distance away from the object. It is confused.
The eagle rustles its feathers, purposefully shaking the huge tree with its massive energy. Handfuls of leaves, loosened by its strength, trickle down to the ground. The powerful creature settles on the branch facing its false prey. Hidden from view; he waits patiently.
Soon a hyena trudges through the heavy snow. With trepidation, the hyena looks at her surroundings; she is in unfamiliar territory. The eagle notices it, but stays perched, concealed in the tree.
The hyena is tired and hungry; she perks up when she sees the bright object on the snow. Eagerly, the hyena sniffs the air and smells life. She crouches in the snow, waiting for movement from the carcass; this would confirm warmth left in her meal.
She licks her drooling lips with anticipation. Her belly is cold and empty. There is no movement from the carcass. There is only a cold stillness in the air that stirs your heart. The hyena crawls closer to the object, a bit apprehensive. She guardedly scans the area for other creatures, such as the killer, or other scavengers ready to feed. There is no one in sight.
The hyena reaches the object and sniffs it. Immediately, she jumps up and yelps, as if she received an electric shock on the tip of her chilled nose.
She stands there, tilts her head, and looks questionably at the object. Then she yowls at the sky in frustration for being cheated out of a meal. The hyena stops yowling, and swiftly retreats behind the tree that is adjacent to the larger tree, where the eagle resides.
She quivers slightly as she sees the predator perched in the other tree. They lock eyes and witness each other silently. Then, they turn their gaze to the object shimmering on the snow. And together, they wait.
