Lately, I hear so many women my age complain about how bored they are. I’ve also noticed how they create faux high school drama’s trying to get reactions, perhaps in order to keep life interesting (this will be another blog!). I react slightly startled to this, as I don’t really like the drama nor have I ever been bored a day in my life. Uninterested in something yes, I’ll agree to that, but bored never. I had to ask myself why? Why is it that I don’t get bored and never feel like there are enough hours in the day? Bottom line, I believe it comes down to being creative. Going back to my childhood being busy was encouraged in our house. If you complained about being bored you were told to go and clean your room. Need I say more!
I remember around the age of eight watching my father paint a canvas of a winter scene with a skier in our kitchen and thinking, “I’m going to do that some day.” It was thrilling and exciting to watch him paint. The creative part of me came out early and as a small child I felt rewarded for this in many ways. In grade school I was considered the go to person for bulletin boards, posters and anything creative. Around the age of eleven I did several drawings of hands in charcoal. One of these drawings had several hands twisting and turning at different angles. I copied these from a book and was pretty proud of my accomplishment. That weekend I took the drawings to my Grandmother Nanny’s house to show her. Nanny was so impressed she wanted to buy the drawing. Buy it I thought! You can’t imagine my thrill as a child…now I knew I was good!
Nanny paid me twenty-five dollars for the drawing. I was rich! And indeed I was, I was rich in spirit. She fed me in a way that encouraged me to struggle through all the ups and downs of an Artists career. She was my first patron and I will forever be thankful for that. She framed the drawing and hung it in her living room until she died in her late nineties. I was always touched by this true loyalty to me. Leaving me with a lasting gift of belief, creative curiousity and a full spirit that is never bored. For this and much more I will be forever thankful.
This is a wonderful tribute to the creative spirit. Your grandmother did two things for you on the day that she purchased your early work. She gave you a sense of accomplishment by supporting your self esteem but more importantly she PAID you.. which gave you the message at a young age that being an artist is a career through which one can make a living and not a hobby that can only be done after you finish the day at your REAL job. So few talented artists get that kind of support early on and realize way to late that they deserve and should expect to make a living like any other skilled worker.
Thank you Kitty, I so agree. It set something in motion that never turned off…and the gift she gave me I have paid it forward a hundred times knowing what it meant to me. When someone values your creative spirit it opens a permanent door for your lifes journey. Looking forward to connectng with you soon!