The Beginning
When I think back to my earliest memories of creating I remember making a little figure out of twigs to play with in my grandparent’s garden. I remember my sister and I used sticks and leaves and rocks to make houses for our little stick people.
I remember another time when the adults were pruning the shrubs we made costumes for ourselves out of leaves. At school, other children might be skipping rope, playing on the swings, but I found a place in the school field where someone’s garden grew over the school fence. I plucked leaves, twigs, and seedpods to make little pretend pets. I think I have always had an urge to create.
When I was about seven, my teacher used a whole stack of white construction paper to make me a book to draw in. I heard her tell my Mom “Your daughter is so talented.” I went home that day and I thought "I have to draw a really wonderful picture in this special book my teacher made for me". And I remember thinking it had to be the best picture I had ever drawn. So I drew a princess on a castle balcony, a prince on a horse, sword in hand fighting a dragon. Phew! When I was done I was pleased. I was exhausted after drawing the best picture ever! My picture brought lots of praise from my teacher. Then she said the fateful words. “I can’t wait to see what you draw tonight.” Uhgg! What could top a princess, a dragon, and a horse!? Oh!! A horse! Horses!! Lots of horses! A heard of wild mustangs and a cowboy rounding them up!
The mustang round up was the last picture I drew in that special book my teacher made for me. The pressure I put on myself was just too great. What if my next picture wasn’t as good and I messed the whole book up! What theme would be grand enough to draw for the book? Besides, I only knew how to draw my two favorite things: princesses and horses and I had already done that!
There after I went back to drawing in the margin of my school papers and on the backs of worksheets. Then the drawing was just for fun, and I wasn’t wasting “good” paper if I messed up. If I liked it I kept it with my other scraps. If I didn’t I threw it away and had no guilt about waste.
I remember another time when the adults were pruning the shrubs we made costumes for ourselves out of leaves. At school, other children might be skipping rope, playing on the swings, but I found a place in the school field where someone’s garden grew over the school fence. I plucked leaves, twigs, and seedpods to make little pretend pets. I think I have always had an urge to create.
When I was about seven, my teacher used a whole stack of white construction paper to make me a book to draw in. I heard her tell my Mom “Your daughter is so talented.” I went home that day and I thought "I have to draw a really wonderful picture in this special book my teacher made for me". And I remember thinking it had to be the best picture I had ever drawn. So I drew a princess on a castle balcony, a prince on a horse, sword in hand fighting a dragon. Phew! When I was done I was pleased. I was exhausted after drawing the best picture ever! My picture brought lots of praise from my teacher. Then she said the fateful words. “I can’t wait to see what you draw tonight.” Uhgg! What could top a princess, a dragon, and a horse!? Oh!! A horse! Horses!! Lots of horses! A heard of wild mustangs and a cowboy rounding them up!
The mustang round up was the last picture I drew in that special book my teacher made for me. The pressure I put on myself was just too great. What if my next picture wasn’t as good and I messed the whole book up! What theme would be grand enough to draw for the book? Besides, I only knew how to draw my two favorite things: princesses and horses and I had already done that!
There after I went back to drawing in the margin of my school papers and on the backs of worksheets. Then the drawing was just for fun, and I wasn’t wasting “good” paper if I messed up. If I liked it I kept it with my other scraps. If I didn’t I threw it away and had no guilt about waste.
