Artist Crystal Michelle Fallin Artwork

 

Crystal’s artwork “Tulips in Blue Vases.”  The composition consist of 8 sections of flowers, vases, and cabins.  It has an modern abstract feel with the shapes, lines and dimensions of the different objects against the wall and background.  Crystal was in the third grade age 8 in 1993 when she did this artwork  She was gifted at an early age in drawing and selecting primary, secondary and complementary colors.

Dance of Sorrow and Joy

Beloved Daughter

Crystal Michelle Fallin

June 19, 1984 - Newman, Georgia

August 18, 2019 - The Valley, Anguilla 

In Loving Memory 

 

September 7 is the 2nd anniversary of laying  my daughter Crystal to rest near her grandmother’s grave in Columbus Georgia.  To honor her, we visited the river bank where her friends held a life’s celebration honoring her life.  We said a prayer and threw a bouquet of flowers on the river watching the tide carrying them to her “crossing the bar” to the other side.  

Crossing the Bar

Alfred Lord Tennyson - 1809-1892

 Sunset and evening star,

  And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
  When I put out to sea,

But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
  Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
  Turns again home.

Twilight and evening bell,
  And after that the dark! 
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
  When I embark;

For tho’ from out our bourne of Time and Place
  The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face 
  When I have cross’d the bar.

Crystal Expressions

 

These are just a few of the different types of greeting cards I have designed using my daughter's Art.  Birthday Cards, Thinking of You, Hello, Thank You, Christmas Cards, Motivational and inspirational cards, Encouragement cards, etc.  These  cards have been mailed to nursing homes, veterans, foster children, assistant living residents, hospitals, school, shut-ins, Ronald McDonald House, Care ministry lists, throughout the US, Canada, England, Germany, Belgium,  France, Scotland, and so on.

Artist Crystal Michelle Fallin

 

For her birthday, I honor my daughter today through her art.  This is a collection of Crystal's colored pencil artistry consisting of creative drawings of her own unique interpretations of classic Disney characters.  The collection includes Chateau de Chambord and Belle from Beauty and the Beast, and "A Beautiful Life" mermaids inspired by Ariel from The Little Mermaid.  Her art graces the covers of Greeting and Handcrafted Cards, Notebooks, Journals and gifts for children and the young at heart.

I use her art to touch the lives of others for encouragement, kindness and love to those who are ill, isolated and lonely, to connect on an emotional level with people in need.  The groups and organizations include but not limited to:  The Angel Card Project; Cards for Hospitalized Kids; Blessings in a  Backpack; Small Acts Big Change; Smiles for Seniors; Braid Missions; Kind Cards for Cool Kids; Postcards for Kindness; From the Heart - UK; Random Acts for Cardness - Card Showers and Smiles for Kids, Three Wishes for Ruby's Residents, etc.  

Crystal Michelle Fallin

June 19, 1984 - August 18, 2019

Letting Go to Move Forward

 

"We know that our loved one has died.  Do we recognize that in that death a part of us has died, too!  The part of us that lived in our relationship to that person alive in the world has died.  The part of us that lived in expectation of a future on earth together has died.  The part of us that enjoyed the commonality of shared memories has died.  This is a lot to lose...  We have to let go and then in the spaces where those deaths have occurred, new life will spring.  Some of the new life may be our new relationship with our lost love."  ~Martha Hickman  

"At every point in the human journey we find that we have to let go in order to move forward; and letting go means dying a little.  In the process we are being created anew, awakened afresh to the source of our being."  ~Kathleen Fischer

My journal of grief for my daughter Crystal involves a part of me dying.  I have turned to the spirit of her creativity in her art work to help move forward.  My new relationship is with her as an artist and her legacy of writing notes and cards for the people she loved.  I have continued that legacy with  my Card Ministry "Crystal Expressions."  I joined multiple groups "Cards of Kindness, Cards for Cool Kids, Small Acts Big Change, Braid Missions, Smiles for Seniors, etc. to share her passion for coloring and designing cards.  It gives me comfort sharing her artwork with others.

I have opened my hand and heart to relinquish and to receive.

The Joy and Sadness of Itsy Bitsy Spider

The memories of my daughter as she was growing up dancing, singing, laughing, riding her bike, playing with her toys, watching Disney movies, drawing and coloring brings me so much joy and appreciation of her talents, personality, fun loving and adventurous nature. This journey of loss and grief is a long one but I also feel joy and grateful to God for giving me this precious daughter to share and love for a short time. When Crystal was in kindergarten I made a spider costume for her Kindergarten play.  She was the itsy bitty spider that crawled up the water spout.  Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.  Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain, and the itsy bitsy spider went up the sprout again.  I also read to her the nursery rhyme of Little Miss Muffet.  I loved those rhymes when I was her age and it was a joy to share them with her and to sew her the costume.  I feel both joy of my own childhood memories, joy of the memories of her in her costume as well as sadness when I hear these nursery rhymes.  I can see beyond the pain with appreciation and joy of having her as my daughter.  The threads of Joy and Sadness are part of the tapestry woven together in my daily life.  As long as I breath my love for her is and always will be a part of me.

Little Miss Muffet

Little miss Muffet she sat on her tuffet, eating her curds eating and whey
Along came a spider who sat down beside her
And frightened miss Muffet away.

What Now?

Isaiah asks, "Have you not known?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth."  (Isaiah 40:28 NIV)  

As time passed, after my daughter's death and during the pandemic lockdowns, all church programs and activities were shutdown so isolation, loneliness and illness became a way of life for many.  I ask God, What now?  I ask the Lord to lead me to a new ministry.  Something I could do that would help me with my grief, keep my daughter's art alive, and to serve God the same time.  I started a card ministry to use my daughter's artwork and my photography to spread uplifting messages and encouragement to the lonely, elderly, orphans and foster children.  My card ministry is called Crystal Expressions.  It has expanded to Spiritual Cards, handcrafted cards as well as photography mounted cards and now I have started painting watercolor cards.  For SIFAT, an international Christian organization, I custom printed Spanish Bible Verse Cards for them to send to their students and alumni in South and Central America,  I was informed this week that they are traveling to Costa Rico and plan to distribute my cards to their Spanish students living there.  God has opened the door for me to spread his Word through this card ministry and the opportunities keep flowing in.  

Filling the Empty Space

 In filling the empty space from the love one I have lost, Life has giving me an opportunity to share the artistic and creative work of Crystal's color pencil drawings and coloring.  I now have a card ministry called "Crystal Expressions" which is a collection of her artwork used in handcrafted cards.  I use Crystal's art to bring smiles to seniors, hospitalized kids, foster children and those who are lonely, isolated and suffering.  These cards were mailed to "Small Acts Big Change" to be distributed to nursing homes and assistant living facilities.  The spirit of Crystal's art lives on and is enjoyed by the elderly and children across the United States, Canada, Scotland, Holland, Germany, France and England.  These are the places where her art has been shared to bring encouragement and a smile.

The Binding Thread of Grief

 

When my daughter departed this earth everything brushed against the raw wounds of my grief, reminding me of Crystal.  A tilt of the head, a laugh, fragrance of candles, the beach, walking the neighborhood, places where she ate, attended daycare, schools, playgrounds, the Nutcracker Ballet, and the list goes on.  Even drawings of children who resemble her attracts my attention.  It often brings tears to my eyes and sometimes it's difficult to bear but I also can't let them go.  These binding threads of grief is gradually, bit by bit, becoming gifts of loving memories that can never be taken away.  So there is hope where loving memories can also bring smiles.  The binding thread of grief also brings treasures.  Crystal's artwork lifts my spirit and I use it to bring smiles to the lonely, isolated and elderly through non profit groups The Angel Card Project and Kind Cards for Cool Kids.  I used her artwork and added graphics and text for Valentines and mailed the cards to 100 people around the country.

Crystal Michelle Fallin - Artist Portrait

Beautiful Pencil drawing of Crystal Michelle Fallin December 10. 2002 when she was 18 years old.  
 

Your Star will always Shine

Your Star Will Always Shine

A free spirit God design,

With her own rhythm and style.

Each step is filled

With Enchantment and Charm.

Through these magical journeys

For seven years,

Our Danseuse, we thank you

For these memories you gave.

"Treasuries Forever'

You allow us to share,

In these moments in time.

Your Star will Always Shine,

In our hearts and our minds.

Poem by PL Fallin

Published 1997

"The Snow Maiden" Poem by PL Fallin

The Snow Maiden

The Snow Cascaded, Swirled and Blew
In the Magical Kingdom
Of the Land of Snow;

Amidst the Snow Flakes and Fairies,

The Snow Maiden Dances,

Twirling on Pointed Toes

From Moonbeam to Shadow;

Her Silhouette we followed 

From Forest to Meadow;

Snow and Ice are Her Friends,

The Coated White Earth is her Floor;

Center Stage from Heaven

The Stars Shine on Her,

Seeking no other;

She is the Snow Maiden

Graceful and Fair,

In her Fairy White Dress

With Star Light in her Hair;

Dancing in Bliss

With no Worries or Cares,

Delicate and Graceful

From Finger Tip to Toe,

She's Eloquent to Behold;

Her Eyes Sparkles like Crystals,

Amidst the Snow Fairies and Sprites,

She Waltzes in Solace

With Mystical Delight;

From Winter's Breath She Sprang

Twirling and Dancing in the Chilled Air

Through the Forest and the Fields

The Wind Whispers her name,

Brilliant and Translucent, Crystal

The Maiden of Heaven's White Veil.

Published 1997

by Peggy Fallin

Snow Maiden  Soloist, Crystal Michelle Fallin in Nutcracker Ballet 1997, Premier Ballet Company

Find Rest in the Lord

 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,

and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you

and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble

in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Matthew 11:28-29 NIV

Above the Earth Way

"Her love is everywhere.  It follows me as I go about the house, meets me in the garden, sends swans into my dreams.  In a strange, underwater or above earth way, I am very nearly happy."

Author Sylvia Townsend Warner (1893-1978)

Crystal Expressions “Sisters of the Sea”

Crystal Expressions Lady Belle

Crystal Expressions “Stella Rose”