HOW CAN IT BE


PAINTING
BY VICTORIA CAVALERI

How Can It Be?

It’s a question I’ve asked repeatedly throughout my life. Maybe because I wasn’t socialized in the conventional way. Growing up under my grandfather’s wisdom felt almost magical—he believed in honesty, following your dreams, and trusting in a guiding force.

He often spoke of his time in San Francisco, helping to rebuild the city after the devastating 1906 earthquake and fire. Just a young immigrant boy, he witnessed firsthand the destruction of over 80% of the city and the loss of thousands of lives.

With his earnings, he bought land in Half Moon Bay—only to lose it years later when he couldn’t pay the $300 property tax. Hard times followed. He married, started a family of seven children, and when life grew even tougher, he moved to the interior of Canada. There, he worked as a carpenter while tending a small piece of land to feed his growing family.

When the Depression years passed, he returned to America, settling in Washington State. His two sons fought in World War II—one enduring a brutal 300-mile death march before spending three years as a prisoner of war. My grandfather lived to be 100 years old.

I often wonder what he would say about this land he loved so deeply.

Life is about learning, changing, and wondering.
Wondering if you know what you’re doing.
Wondering what comes next.
Learning to wonder without worry—
and realizing that wonder itself is the path forward.

"The Green Door" with its mystery and intrigue, and "That Old Black Magic" with its
haunting, almost spellbinding quality often come to mind when I am painting. It makes me
wonder if those early songs shaped the way I experience music and art?

ACRILIC ON CANVAS

The Green Door





ART PRINT BY VICTORIA CAVALERI