The Haines family from Flagstaff County, near Forestburg, moved to the area about a year ago, and a few months ago they rescued their dog, Daisy, by adopting her from Canine Love Dog Rescue in Daysland.
Daisy has turned into a much-loved member of the Haines family which includes Mom, Dad, three kids (Luna, Poppy, and Forrest), Miller, their older dog, along with some chickens, turkeys, and horses. Oh, and a cat.
The family were so grateful for Daisy, they were looking for a way to show their appreciation to the dog rescue where they got her. In addition to that, dad Isaac was looking for a way to support daughter Luna in her art.
So Isaac and Luna collaborated on a book full of Luna’s art, called “Lost in my Imagination,” which is now published and available for purchase at Amazon.ca, for $15. (https://a.co/d/fTtCRfS)
Luna has pledged $1 from each sale to go back to Canine Love Dog Rescue, and the rest will go either to more art supplies, her college fund, or even some candy.
She says she’s hoping that the money she donates will help buy more dog beds, more dog toys, and even more food; whatever’s needed.
Mom Kristen says that Luna (Sawyer Luna Haines) was born with a crayon in her hand, and that might be true, as she’s amassed quite a body of work for an eight-year-old heading into Grade 3 at Forestburg School this fall.
Luna has been drawing and painting, using whatever is at hand, from markers to water paints, for as long as she can remember.
She says that she tries to pick it up and do something every day. One of the drawbacks of starting school, for her, was not being able to work on her art whenever she wanted.
Mom says, “In Grade 1 she kept coming home starving, because at lunch time she thought she had to decide between eating the lunch we packed her or doing her art, and she constantly chose her art and brought her whole lunch back home after school.”
Luna, as she prefers to be called, draws a whole variety of subject matter, whether it’s landscapes, or portraits, she’s not really afraid to tackle any subject matter. A recent visit to one of her mom’s friends, who is also an artist, led to Luna getting the opportunity to try an abstract art piece, with a whole wealth of different mediums to try.
She now also has a set of chalk pastels, courtesy her artist friend, that she’s hoping to get lots of use of.
This wasn’t Luna’s first book, she and dad also self-published a booklet of her drawings and paintings and poetic scene descriptions. Dad scanned the art and then printed each page, and bound the book the old-fashioned way, with cord. There’s only a single copy of this one that Luna treasures. She’s excited to be able to share her new book with more people.
She says she hopes that not only will her actions prompt other people to support the Canine Love Dog Rescue, she’s also always hoping to inspire other people with her art to try it themselves. “I don’t want people to say ‘I’m too little,’ or ‘I can’t draw.’ I want to inspire people to try art, to practice, and to try new things.”
She recently inspired a friend to make a mini-book illustrating her emotions, and it turned out beautifully, something both Luna and her friend were thrilled with.
Luna also is grateful for Sarah and Hayley’s help at the Forestburg Library for proofreading her book before it was published.
The Haines’ had the opportunity to meet with Debbie Reynolds from Canine Love Rescue earlier this week, and she was thrilled and grateful to hear about Luna’s book and donations.
She says she’s got plenty more good dogs like Daisy waiting for their forever homes, too, at the rescue.
Leslie Cholowsky
Editor