Friday, December 7, 2018

NOTES FROM THE 8TH DECADE #28


   TO BE MORE THAN I AM
March 2016
 
 
How do we become the person that we are? How much control do we have in defining ourselves? If we are fortunate, life offers us the opportunity to grow and develop as persons, to become what we were intended to be. The circumstances affecting our lives are many, and their influences range from the most minor, to the most significant: heredity, family, and financial and economic status all play a role, as does the unpredictability of fate.

How do we define ourselves? Occupation, personal beliefs, passionate interests, family, and socio-economic status are some of the criteria we can use, personal choices we much each make for ourselves.

Looking back I see now that I have always wanted to be more than I am. This has been especially true with my art. From the very beginning, I entered our local art world (Wilmington Delaware) with unwarranted boldness and optimism. I had grand ideas for my future that would remain with me for the next 35 years. It would be inaccurate to say that I’ve been driven in pursuit of these aspirations, but I have certainly been committed to be the best that I could be. I imagined my work being represented in several “good” galleries, as well as commercial success that went beyond my local market, and over the years have had a measure of success in this regard.

I can see now that many of my aspirations were naïve and some were unrealistic.  But it was that naivety that allowed me to achieve what success I have had with my art. Now, in the later years of my life, that naivety is tempered with reality, and the new challenge is finding a way to balance these sometimes opposing forces. After 77 years…the piss and vinegar and unbridled optimism and enthusiasm have given way to a more measured version of the same. The goals are not as lofty, but the commitment is still there. Perhaps this is the time to really focus on improving my craftsmanship and pushing at the borders of my comfort zone, in both the art and the writing. ?????

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