Wooden Hearts and Paper Roses
I love using AI image creators to make designs that appear to be either paper cut or wood cut. I do not have the talent or patience to do those crafts in real life, but I’ve seen them up close, and the detail is no comparison to the imitation. Still, I’m thankful for this form of media that allows my imagination to soar–even if it’s on artificial wings.
But as we look at all the abilities of AI, we’re faced with the fact that people can use these tools to create imitations of things they want others to see as real. Deep fake videos have made the subjects wonder how the creators got the detail so perfect that the subject felt as if they were looking into a mirror. Of course motivation is the real behind-the-scenes catalyst that determines if the project is just fun or truly nefarious.
Well before AI and computers, and even before the invention of plastic, real love was being imitated to all sorts of audiences for all sorts of reasons. Usually, the motivations were manipulation. Like Samson and Delilah, someone acts like they love someone else in order to cause that someone else to feel trusting enough to yield to requests. Delilah’s power of manipulation was so great that after she’d proven more than once that she was going to sell her lover out, he showed back up on her doorstep until the one confession too many that cost him his eyesight, his freedom, and eventually his life.
No one really likes the fake stuff, and even less when it’s fake love. My title combines two song titles decrying fake love, or real love coming to an end. Elvis said he didn’t have a wooden heart, so he would feel all the pain of loss if his love interest said goodbye. Linda Ronstadt begged her fake love to take away the real flowers he’d sent her for an (apparently fake) apology and replace them with fake paper flowers to match his imitation love. And though I didn’t add a teddy bear to the design, it’s worth mentioning that Barbara Fairchild sings a lament of a failed love that made her wish she was just a stuffed teddy bear on the shelf of a toy store. By only speaking a programmed “Isn’t it a lovely day” sentiment at the pull of a string, she wouldn’t have to feel the pain of fake love or real abandonment ever again.
There are many more songs with lovers begging each other for honesty and faithfulness. People want to be loved for real, and they want to give their love without fear of it being rejected or abused. And we want those things because we are made in the image of a God who is also called “Love” and has proven He’s not fake in a zillion different ways. And what does He want in return? The same thing back. He doesn’t have a wooden heart so He feels our rejection. He doesn’t want paper roses or Sunday only attention. And, He has no desire to just be a toy waiting for someone to pull His string for a miracle or blessing. Like us, He too wants true love. And in return, He promises real, satisfying love forever.
Matthew 28:20 CSB
[20] teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
https://bible.com/bible/1713/mat.28.20.CSB
And I love the way this promise is stated in The Message Bible...
Hebrews 13:5-6 MSG
[5-6] Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have. Since God assured us, “I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you,” we can boldly quote, God is there, ready to help; I’m fearless no matter what. Who or what can get to me?
https://bible.com/bible/97/heb.13.5-6.MSG
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Happy Birthday, Grandma!
One of the blessings of being the first born is also getting to be the first grandchild. One of my favorite stories from childhood is when my mom, who was living in Ohio, called up my grandmother (her mother) to wish her a happy birthday. It was also the day of my birth, but Grandma did not know it yet, so Mom said, “Happy Birthday, Grandma!”
Of course, Grandma began her usual thanks for the wishes when the new term hit her. “Wait… Grandma?”
And thus began the plans to transport me back to Southern California and all the family members who had new titles like grandma, grandpa, aunt, uncle, etc. When life became more difficult not many years later, I believe the special position as the “first” everything, and all the spoiling that came with it in my formative years, gave me a balance that made the hard times easier to survive. And they made me a better big sister who could take control and take care as needed. Not perfect, mind you, as I was still a child, but I think I was a little more attentive to my baby sister.
I still have fond memories of shared birthday gatherings when there would be a cake with both names, or a big and little cake when we each got our own. I loved sharing my birthday with my grandmother, and it never felt the same after she left this world. But I will always have that sweet story of the phone call “reveal” to my newly ordained Grandma. 😁
Here’s one of those memories from a Polaroid I shared to my Flickr feed, though I’m sorry I cannot seem to control the sizes from Flickr pages to this blog…
Thank you for joining me on this trip down memory lane. And if you have a grandmother who needs a pretty card for her birthday, feel free to download and use the card above. You can add a name in multiple photo editing apps, but I recommend Photo Studio Pro the most.
And one last thing; I learned today that there is a scientific group doing studies on mother’s milk that shows how different needs of a baby create different chemical components within the milk. It’s a different composition for boys than girls, it changes for sick babies, and first-time mothers have more cortisol in their milk which causes first-born babies to be more alert, attentive, and anxious. It’s almost like some Intelligent Being designed things to work in certain ways that benefit the human race, huh? 🤩 Read a summary of more highlights from this amazing study by Katie Hinder, an evolutionary anthropologist, on X (you’ll need to log in) at https://x.com/i/status/2016990657450299837 and prepare to be amazed. (If you don’t have an X/Twitter account, maybe look up the scientist by name. It’s a lot of fascinating study.)
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Wombo Dream Butterfly Memories
When I first started using the Wombo Dream AI app, it was creative but lacking in crisp and defined images. The colors were pretty, but many of the images weren’t worth saving. That was around Christmas of 2022, and they were improving daily. I left a 4-star review and explained that horses having 3 legs and 2 tails wasn’t exactly 5 stars, but to keep improving. They replied with happy words for my review.
The images above were made on January 14th, 2024, so this is their 2-year anniversary. They came up in my memories in Amazon photos, and I decided they’d be the perfect share. There were a whole lot more, but I grabbed some of my favorites and let the AI in the Photo Studio Pro app for Android arrange them in a collage. I love that it did all the fitting, and all I had to do was change the background to create a frame I liked and hit save. I could stare at colors like this all day.
I saved a lot of my prompts before they started having problems near the end of 2024 when all the old prompts were erased. I think this may be a collection of some of the prompts I used: ”detailed butterfly with stained glass wings, in a garden of pastel flowers, colorful rays of light in the background, red, blue, purple, green, glittery, gold, silver, sparkles, colorful, sparkling, jeweled, jewel tones, bright, hot pink, glowing, garden, glitter, beautifully lit.” The next image is what I get now with these prompts and using the Dreamland V3 filter. You can see the details are better, so if they ever get everything fixed again, it will certainly be a wonderful app for playing with color and making butterfly memories.
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