Sports enthusiasts sometimes say, “It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.” I was reminded of that earlier this week, when my friend said something that really resonated with me: “It’s all about the hunt!”
In other words, we all work toward goals that we want to accomplish, but some people find the journey itself even more satisfying than the end result.
My friend loves to sew. She told me how much she loves going out and finding just the right pattern for a new project. Next, off she’ll go, looking for the perfect fabric and matching threads. Then the next step is laying out the fabric, cutting the pattern, and then finally sewing it all together. Her favorite part is not wearing the finished garment – but it’s the process of making it that gives her the most joy.
When I was a small child, my father started building boats for a hobby. I’m not talking about the kind that fit on your table – I mean real boats! Big boats… boats that were bigger than our home! We kids used to say he loved building them even more than he liked sailing them. For my dad, it was definitely “all about the hunt!”
I mentioned to that friend that I’m working on three separate projects right now, and that every day I’m preparing one thing or another, doing a little more each day to get ready for this year’s Home and Garden Show. She looked at me and said, “Of course you are!” She obviously knows me better than I thought!
Because, like my friend, and like my dad, for me the greatest joy is in the creative process itself. I love traveling around town, sketching and photographing, gathering the resources I need to compose my paintings. I love taking a little of this and a little of that from my photographs and sketches, putting it all together to create just the right composition. I love interviewing people and hearing their stories. I learn so much from the insights they share with me, and their perspectives are essential to how I visualize the finished painting. But more than anything, I love meeting new people. Each one makes life’s circle a little wider!
After my creative journey is completed, and the painting is finally finished, I feel that it represents the best part of me at that moment in time.
It’s been quite an inspirational year! I hope you’ll come and see the exciting exhibit I’m putting together at the Home and Garden Show! It begins on Friday, March 4th and runs until Sunday the 13th downtown at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. As I mentioned last week, I’ll have some interesting surprises at this year’s show! I’ll be waiting for you at Booth #3146. Visit my website’s “Calender of Events” to find out more about the show.
P.S. – I’ve selected just the right background for my new “Santa’s Workshop” painting… I can’t wait to get started on it!
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