This Is piece number two from the scrap project. I wanted to do something round which was a real test of my patience and abilities. It usually takes me about two days to do an intricate piece, this one took me two weeks. I had never applied the handmade papers on the mat to form a circle so I found myself having to reinvent and test my abilities. The other challenge was to only use the paper in the glass jar, which meant I was limited to what was there. I often found myself running out of or not having a shade or color, so I had to improvise. I have to admit that I said many unlady like phrases while putting this one together.
The piece inside the mat also needed to be circular. I did at least a dozen versions of the watercolor and ink background before I landed on this one. The text is a quote from Pablo Picasso, “To live the creative life we must first lose our fear of being wrong.” It is one of my favorite quotes. I chose to add these words to this circular piece as I had to get past many of my fears and frustrations to pull it all together.
While I fumed and groaned I asked myself about being wrong. We all know there is right and wrong in terms of the law and behaviors, so what does losing our fear of being wrong mean in our own lives? While working I thought about the things I have done wrong, the obstacles I put in my own way AND the mistakes that taught me major life lessons. Some I would have liked to have skipped and yet if I skipped them I would not be where I am today. So was it really a mistake or life’s way of getting me to face a different direction?
What mistakes have you made that forced you to turn, or learn, or change paths? Would you change them or do them sooner to get things moving along? It is hard to admit when we are wrong. It is hard to face our mistakes. If Picasso is correct then we must get past all that to live the creative life we want. That isn’t just for artists or people in a creative industry, it applies to all aspects of life. Relationships, service, love, and joy all demand that we let go of our fear in order to live deeply within all those realms of life. Fear prevents us from moving while being able to admit we are wrong releases us from the chains of our own making. Today would be a good day to give up our fears and live a wonderfully creative life.
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