Introducing a New Steemian: peaceinartwork (Christina M. Wilmes)

This week I became aware of the #ians (introduce a new steemian) initiative by @gmuxx to support newcomers. Even though I cannot guarantee much exposure, I would like to participate, and this week I would like to introduce @peaceinartwork, a.k.a. Christina M. Wilmes, an artist, poet & photographer.

In December, I was on Twitter and had some free time and asked if anyone wanted me to look at their poetry. Christina had tweeted me back and I took a look at her site. I was compelled by her poetry; it spoke directly to my soul. I browsed more on her site and found that she frequently paints and takes photographs. The paintings were mesmerising, so much so that I felt inspired to write poetry based on the paintings. I contacted Christina, and she let me use the images to share on my blog. That was the beginning of our friendship.

_{"Depression", also featured in her poem The Ugly Truth}

In these past two months, I got to know her more. Even though we never met in real life, it is safe to say that she is one of the kindest and bravest souls that I have crossed paths with. Some of her paintings and photographs are for sale on Etsy, and 50% of the proceeds from each sale go to Buddy Project .

Buddy Project is a non-profit movement that aims to prevent suicide and self-harm by pairing people as buddies and raising awareness for mental health.

In her Introductory Post, Christina talks in-depth about herself. She is honest and upfront about her hardships with depression and bipolar disorder. As someone who has suffered from depression, I truly admire that she is quite candid about her life. I am sure that many readers can connect to her struggles and will find her to be an inspiring person. I pulled this quote from her site, Peace in Artwork:

Just as no two paintings are the same,
no two individuals have the same mental illness traits.

There are not many words which I can use to describe her or her work. She truly deserves a warm welcome. On that note, you should read her Introductory Post.

As part of the #ians initiative, after the payout, I will transfer all the SBD earned by this post to @peaceinartwork. This post aims to support Christina, so give her some love! She already has some paintings and poems on her steemit, so go check them out!

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