In Praise of

praising.

“The Loon” In Praise of Cover Art by Allison Beyer, watercolor and pencil.

Hello! It’s been a little while! We traveled to Bolivia (for the first time ever with our 3 small children!!) in February, and then lost two beloved family members in March. Now, we are squarely in Easter season, and I never properly shared THE GOOD NEWS that was and is the Jesuit Media Lab’s Lenten reflection series, In Praise Of! (Let the brilliant and kind Cameron Bellm, editor of the series, tell you why paying attention was this year’s Lenten practice on this AMDG podcast episode.)

My bad. It’s not too late though! You can order it as a book here! Yay! It is a beautiful book.

It was a total delight and a balm to my weary soul to work on these images through the emotional, spiritual and environmental slog that were January and February 2026 in the USA. It was a joy and an honor to illustrate essays written by so many wise people I love and admire! Sharing the illustrations with Erin Buckley was THE dream team.

The above cover image was created with a pencil sketch on watercolor paper, masking fluid scratched on with a toothpick, a series of watercolor layers and colored pencils.

I chose the loon in solidarity with the witness of discipleship of Minnesotans in 2026. The Common Loon is not only one of my personal favorite birds. It is not only the recipient of praise in several of my favorite Mary Oliver poems. Loons are the state bird of Minnesota. Loons return when the ice melts. And the ice always melts.

Resurrection. Spring. Winter and death and night and terrorism and occupation and deportation do not have the final word. The loons return. The stone is rolled away, the Teacher calls our name, shimmering, in the hazy light of dawn.

We respond with praise.

“The Loon” In Praise of Cover Art by Allison Beyer, watercolor and pencil.