The painting was inspired by the poem, “Hope” by Emily Dickinson:

"Hope" is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tunes without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I've heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet - never - in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of me.

Hope Rafkin is an artist living in Cooper-Young, Memphis, TN. They paint and embroider pictures of birds. “Their songs and their beauty give me strength and inspiration,” says Rafkin.