Activism…

The prompt this week in the private calligraphy group was ‘Activism”. We were challenged to create a poster or rough that exhibited our passion for a topic. I thought long and hard about this topic, as I do not see myself as an activist. I was a little stumped as to what I might create related to the prompt. I didn’t want to get political, yet we were challenged to share something that would stir us to action.

I thought about The Pledge of Allegiance. I thought about the words and their meaning, and what they meant to the author so many centuries ago. I thought about the many blessings we have as Americans – abundance, wealth, freedom of speech, freedom to do anything we want. I thought about the people who have forgotten why we are proud to be Americans, and what opportunity this land provides that no other country can claim. As Americans we are renegades, rebels, ingenious and innovative. We have the freedom to say what we want, when we want, whenever we want. And we have the right to walk away and NOT hear or see or participate in what others try to shove down our throats. All that is somehow communicated in this simple pledge.

I wanted to create something to demonstrate these words in a different manner…something more graphic. This is the rough I created, and hope to develop it into a full blown piece with handmade papers and a more elegant layout.

This week I was reminded that sometimes you need to get your idea down on paper, let it simmer and rest before it is ready for a full blown project. Timing is everything. It takes time for our ideas and skills to meet in harmony. It takes distance and calm for our minds to form the thoughts to move our bodies into action. Somewhere courage and belief, learning and understanding all have to work together before you are ready for your idea to reach full bloom. Once things are on paper, walk away and let it all grow in the back of your mind. Give your idea room to grow; when it is ready and when you are ready everything you can imagine will be created, probably bigger and better than your initial idea. Forcing the issue does nothing but frustrate everyone.

Bask in the abundance of your idea, then give it time to breathe. Just like our country has changed since these words were first penned, your idea will grow and expand with time.