Installation Day

This is the moment I’ve been working toward for six months—planning, measuring, re-measuring, and refining every detail until everything aligned. Today, Alma is ready to rise. Watching the crane approach, chains secured and balanced just so, I could feel the weight of the work behind me and the promise of the work ahead.

There’s a unique kind of stillness that settles in on installation day. It’s the quiet recognition that vision, persistence, and countless decisions have finally converged into a single, tangible moment. As Alma lifted slowly to the Heavens, I found myself replaying the entire journey—every blueprint, every adjustment, every conversation that shaped the sculpture’s path to this site.

Seeing her suspended against the sky was emotional in a way I never quite expect, no matter how many projects I complete. It’s a reminder that imagination can be made real with enough discipline and dedication. And for the first time in a long while, I allowed myself a breath of relief. Maybe, just maybe, I can pause and savor the fruits of this labor—at least for a moment—before the final phase begins.

Installation day is always a milestone, but this one feels especially meaningful. Alma is is coming home and the El Rio Community will soon welcome her with open arms.