Having passed my allotted three score and ten years, and hopefully, acquired some wisdom, insight and experience of life, urged and encouraged by my wonderful, loving eldest son David, I am embarking on this blog – a diary of my impressions of the tumultuous and frightening world around me.

As an artist, I explore ideas through visual images. Rembrandt was perhaps the supreme ‘illustrator’, but then his work went far beyond factual representation. His was the supreme gift of looking deep into human condition, and finding the metaphors in paint, line, shape and colours. This I have striven to do, through my etchings and works in glass, often, I feel, with some success.

I was impressed by recent events; facets of human nature, and what I see as a religious impulse. I was involved in an inter-faith Mitzva Day initiative on behalf of local homeless people. We stood outside the Iceland supermarket on Mill Hill Broadway together with three vicars and our own Rabbi Shochet, collecting contributions from shoppers and passers-by. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of ordinary people, offering us bags full of groceries. In contrast, together with countless others, I was shocked and stunned by the recent horrific murderous attacks in Paris, and by the knife-wielding terrorist on a Jerusalem bus, acting on a warped ideology.

In addition, Uri – my husband – has been ill on and off, but yesterday, suddenly much worse than previously. I am afraid, and feel powerless.

I want to say something about these phenomena, but at present metaphors fail me. I seem to be suffering from ‘stained glass artist's block’, and even the mere words seem inadequate.