Mantra Monday: The Secret is to Begin

A couple Saturday back I ventured out to the wilds of NE, with the local members of Bauhaus, to Artomatic. Begun in 1999, it was a way for local artists to come together and share with each other and the community at large. At Artomatic, two things are clear: the fun and the true passion that some of these Artists have for their work.

While walking through the floors I was stopped dead in my tracks by a single lithography piece. Simple white courier lettering on a plain black background:

The secret
is to begin.

In that solitary moment I realized that I've been talking the talk, without walking the walk. Talking about metalsmithing. Then saying that I'm "taking a break" (even though the last piece I completed was in May of 2007) from that to concentrate on drawing and teach myself how to paint. Have I started back on drawing, honestly? Truly?

No.
Why?

I chalk it up to fear of failure - beacuse if you don't start, you can't "fail," right?

It's absolutely amazing how easy it is for me to find something else to direct my energy into. It's astonishing how creative or desperate (as the case might be, my bathroom is now pretty much spotless) I can be when it comes down to avoiding taking action. My recent favorites are spending time on YouTube looking up Ashtanga yoga demos or "cleaning" my apartment or trying out new recipes or reorganizing my tea.

So, last Thursday night I returned to the metalsmithing bench. Tomorrow night, I begin sitting with my drawing board from 7:00pm until at least 9:30pm. If I have the discipline to wake at 5am for Mysore, I should certainly have the discipline for something I have enjoyed for as long as I can remember.

Small yet determined steps, remembering that...



The secret is to begin.