For the last month or so I've intended to write a post. I thought I might write about Perfection (with a capital. Yep). I even wrote it, and swore to put it up exactly as is, just to prove I'm trying to get past the need for everything to be perfect.
Only I never did. Ironic.
Then had a birthday (Year older. Ahhh!!). Went on a mini-adventure (spent the week out of town at a friend's house). Now back to normal life (writing, art, looking for a job, etc...).
Been a bit of a crazy week at that. Trying to get back into the swing of things, I guess. And then, a very close friend of the family (an "adopted grandma" actually) died this week. Tonight and tomorrow, visitation and funeral. Craziness continues.
Not a good day for a blog post you see. But here I am writing it.
I guess the point is, I don't have to feel like I must write something life-changing or deep or whatever when I post here. I'm just being me. Sometimes I write something really cool. Sometimes not.
I'll just be me, and let God use it all--the awesome parts, the failures, the mistakes--to make whatever he wants of me.
Seems to be part of a lesson He's trying to hammer into my head, lately. Not being ruled by the need for perfection, I mean. In my life, and in creativety (art or writing or anything else). It started with the move to a free blog.
Then read some great ebooks by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Katherine Rusch. It's encouraged me to write more and worry less...about marketing and all that. Writing is what I do best (and it's the most fun!). I can always go back and fix mistakes later. There WILL be mistakes, but I've got to learn to be okay with that. It's part of learning. And that's the cool part about being an indie author. You can always tweak and fix things at any time.
I'm taking part in Lifebook 2016 from the wonderful, adorable, AMAZING Tamara LaPorte. Each lesson is a reminder not to worry about perfection, but one in particular hit home.
It's called "Fearless Art" and taught by Annie Hammond. In the lesson she collaborates with her 3 year old daughter, Tallulah, on a painting and all I can say is...wow! I think I want to be Tallulah when I grow up.
Also I think I shall be borrowing several of my young cousins for painting fun in the future. I already save old drawings the kids make because I think its fun to make works of art around them. This lesson just showed me so much more I can do with them.
Its certainly encouraged me to let my Inner Child come out and play. I even played a little painting game with my sister (a few years younger than me, but not into art at all). We took turns working on the same picture. Great fun, and I love how it turned out!
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| What we ended up with :) |
At any rate. That's where I'm at right now in my life.
Don't be perfect. Be messy, flawed, wonderful YOU.
God can use you that way. Believe me.
Don't believe me? Take it from an artist. I make lots of messy mistakes when I create art. I can either throw it out...or make something gorgeous out of it.
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| For example this.... |
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| ....became this! |
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| And this? |
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| Tada! (forgive the poor lighting. Imperfections remember...) |
I've learned that there's hardly anything I can do to a painting that can't be fixed, covered up, or turned into something really, really cool.
For the record, God is great at making really cool and gorgeous things out of our mistakes.
So, that's it from me today. Let's all take a deep breath, love our messy selves...and trust God to make masterpieces out of us!
I leave you with another picture or two:
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| Meet Gwendolyn (he's a bonsai tree) and Renaldo the hog. They live with the friend I visited last week. :) |
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| Portrait I made of them in a notebook my friend and I share. |
