When I was five years old I informed my mother, with great solemnity that, “I don’t need to learn how to read because I am going to be an artist when I grow up.” I was not interested in the Dick and Jane readers we were forced to recite in first grade. What was the point of learning to read that drivel?
So with great wisdom Mom bought me The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. It had a magical effect, and I became an avid reader. I still admit to a penchant for the fanciful (Science Fiction) the surprising (Agatha Christie) and the profound (applied philosophy).
And true to my goal, I became an artist. That has been the constant in my life.
But I don’t feel “more special” than other people just because I make a living by creating. After thirty-plus years of working in the arts as a profession, I feel more like an apostle of the creative path than anything else. I don’t care to hear “I could never do that!” from my customers. I like them to tell me what they do create. Some of them are great cooks, quite a few of them play an instrument and more than one has shyly told me that she makes jewelry!
Some of them have even sent me delightful photographs of their creations.
If there is one thing this planet could use more of, it is artists. I think Dr. Seuss would agree with me.
– Merry
Recent Comments