Here We Go

Drawing and writing since grade school in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Debra Briggs Whiteflower found motivation for both while homesteading in Nova Scotia and while raising kids and working as a graphic artist and painter in California.

Home for the last twenty years is the Big Island of Hawai'i, where she has taught art and yoga. At nearly 4,000 feet, Volcano Village sits adjacent to one of the most active volcanoes on the planet. Debra finds living on the edge of a national park keeps creative juices flowing, offering ocean vistas, trails through rain forests and around the edges of Kilauea Crater, home of Pele. Whether the Hawaiian goddess is shooting off lava fountains of 1,000 feet or resting quietly, deep in her caldera home, she is a constant source of inspiration.

Putting together this book of paintings and words was motivated by the desire to share two core passions with her three middle school and high school-aged grandchildren. Each grandchild received a hand-bound book. Using methods and knowledge learned from working in a print shop when "cut and paste" meant actual cut and paste, the pages were created on a laptop, printed on a home printer and assembled on a sewing machine with a needle, thread and glue. This second edition is the result of encouragement from friends to share it more widely.