what about....rachel?

have you seen 'what about bob'? with bill murray and richard dryfuess? there is a hilarious scene where bob is strapped and tied to the mast of a boat, and he is yelling at the top of his lungs... 

"i'm sailing! i'm sailing! i'm a sailor! i sail!"

i am having a 'what about bob' moment in my life. i've started going to wine & design when the budget affords, and i love it. like, really, really love it. i have so far only painted 2 canvases, and in my heart of hearts i sing to myself, "i'm painting! i'm painting! i'm a painter! i paint!"

now, understand, my paintings are not terrible... they're even lovely. but when i look at my old friend kim's paintings, i am awed at her stunning work. she is painter.

i had a moment when this crushed me. i realized am not a painter... just a girl who paid her money to take a class and ended up with a modest finished product. but.... but in my simple and ordinary way, i created beauty. i created beauty for my brother - the lucky recipient of my 'work'. it created joy within myself, which is really another form of beauty. and we, humanity, were meant to create and add to the beauty of what has already been created. everyone has an innate ability to give beauty form... in song, in invention, in molecules, in flowers, in children, in discovery, in happiness or hospitality or sculpture or kindness or friendship.

there was a song that was on sesame street when i was a girl. "sing, sing a song... sing out loud... sing out strong. it doesn't matter if it's good enough for anyone else to hear... just sing, sing a song." i nearly let the beauty of kim's art lead me to despair... to where i wanted to stop singing my small song. but you know what? i refuse to dampen the beauty. i choose to embrace the spirit of Bob. guess what, ya'll?

i'm a painter! i'm a painter! i paint! :)