Memories of times long past. Childhood wishes. Candy canes. Decorated pine trees. Ornaments. Houses lining the streets lit up with the merriment of the season. These are my memories of the Christmas holiday seasons.
Not all ghosts of the past are foreboding and intimidating. They're just reflections of our memories.
When I think of the times I spent wishing and praying for the simple things in life. Nothing extravagant because I didn't know what extravagant consisted of. Just a new pair of shoes and a new dress that wasn't previously owned by my older sisters.
The sights and sounds that propelled me to write a letter to someone I was told existed and would grant these wishes if I left something to snack on when he and his team of elves arrived to bring my gift. I was taught that if I gave unselfishly during the year, then it would be returned to me tenfold.
So I wrote the letter. Left the cookies and milk. Then went to bed. Hoping that the next morning would bring all my desires.
My design includes numerous items that are symbolic of recall the past. Themes involving spirituality, secrecy, with ultimately transformation of the body and soul are depicted. The skull motifs and final angelic representation can be seen as the realization that one has been transformed in either mind and body due to the past experiences.
The lessons we were taught by our parents were that, although we were poor in resources due to our economic circumstances, we that:
We were rich in spirituality;
That we should always overlook our shortcomings in comparing ourselves to others with piles of gifts and be grateful and thankful for what we do have;
That we should love our neighbors, pray for our enemies that they find peace, and pray for the sick and less fortunate in this world.
And Finally,
That we should remember the true meaning of the holiday for celebrating not ourselves but our savior and redempter.
Happy Holidays to all who celebrate. May you have a good rest of your year and a lovely start to 2026 with joy and prosperity.
For my current mixed media art project, I wanted to recall my childhood experiences with Christmas my family celebrated during the holiday season. I mixed in some alien aspects of the design since often I felt as though an alien visiting Earth watching from the outside. As with all memories of childhood, some are crystal clear; while others are a bit blurry.
Below are my steps:
To represent the past, I chose the skeleton I retrieved from one of the stable diffusion programs I use, StarryAI. I also called upon another popular stable diffusion program I use, Night Cafe.
| Program: StarryAI | Program: Night Cafe | Program: StarryAI | Program: StarryAI | Program: Night Cafe | Program: StarryAI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |  |
Other images I included in my design to complete the Christmas scene that are a tradition are listed below. I love ornaments for both the inside and outside of the home. I'm not too extravagant when it comes to decorations.
Ornaments ~ Alien Christmas ball - Contributed to the #LIL by @eve66 ~ Reindeer ornament - Contributed to the #LIL by @angelamaria ~ Christmas tree - Contributed to the #LIL by @donroberts ~ Star fractal - Contributed to the #LIL by @redheadpei ~ Double bodied reindeer - Contributed to the #LIL by @eve66 ~ Silver flower - Contributed to the #LIL by @agmoore ~ Reed ribbon bow
I utilized Canva, my design program, to blend the different type images which began by opening a blank, white canvas, then added layers of elements.
A new feature in Canva available to all members is the ability to create your own images. It's called Magic Media. I wanted a specific background to represent a lone back figure in an eerie setting as though waiting on something or someone. The image produced is the first image below.
Placing the stable diffusion image in front of it made the perfect depiction of someone hiding in the background looking at the skeletons of Christmases past.
 |  |  |  | |  |