This book discusses the emergence of Don's unique approach to painting against the backdrop of his life, including his friendship with the author and his long struggles with kidney disease. Professor Shriver taught painting at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and at Asbury University in Wilmore, Kentucky. The essay was produced as an exhibition essay for the memorial retrospective exhibit on display in the Asbury University art gallery from June 19 through September 29, 2017. The piece discusses several of the significant sources of Shriver's aesthetic inspiration. It represents the author's personal testimony to the profound power of abstract painting to convey a complex symbolic visual metaphor. It highlights a selection of paintings by a talented artist and a thoughtful student and professor of art.