During COVID, Natasha Zebrowski Matos ’97 started painting tiny pieces of art about and for her friends. She posted them on social media and wrote about the person and inspiration behind each. After 100 paintings — many made for her MHS family — she put them all together as one piece and received a grant for the project from her employer, Mount Holyoke College.

“These ladies are my touchstone,” says Natasha. “Whenever the most searing pain or secret shame or unbridled joy or the most mundane things touch our lives, we can send each other a quick message and immediately, within moments, find understanding and honest feedback. These women are fiercely loyal, hilarious, loving, and, above all, ride-or-die supportive, and l find myself thanking my lucky stars for them all the time.”

Along the way, Natasha messaged her MHS pals to ask what images they thought of when they think of support. “Someone texted back right away, ‘bras,’ which was followed up quickly with ‘this group.’ Indeed,” she adds.

“So, I painted our good ol’ high school through the lens of a most sturdy flower arch — one of nature’s strongest, most supportive shapes — in all the colors of the rainbow, because while we are all different, with different strengths and areas where we are growing, we help each other grow more confident and sure of being who we are and support each other in blooming. Zou, Soy, Lisa, Rach, Clarita, Noey, and Nikki, I love you all to the end of Holmes Road and back, plus several trillion miles tacked onto that.”