Master of None

I give no apologies for the life I lead.

In my youth that statement would never cross my mind.  In my youth I never felt “good enough” at anything.  I was told if only I did such and such like this or that person then I would be perfect.  Yet no matter what I did I never reached perfection, where I felt good about myself.  Did I have hidden talents, I wondered?  My grandmother taught me to sew and to crochet.  I wrote every day in my journal and had in fact won a writing contest for the Boston Globe when I was twelve years old.  But no matter what I did no one said, wow, you are so talented and lucky.  All I heard was that I should try harder.  But no one in my family ever said do one thing, do it well and be the best at that one thing.  Thank goodness.

My dad wanted to learn and experience the world around him as much as possible and he was able to excel at many, many things over his lifetime. The list of his accomplishments whether it was in a professional or creative role was long.  He went from a deep study of various religions and worked in the local church, to a decision to earn a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Rhode Island in Business Administration, where he graduated with top honors.  He learned to carve with wood, write stories, play the harmonica and a big Lowery organ and was even at one time the base photographer in the US Coast Guard.  The list goes on and on.

As I watched him go from one interest to another it impressed on me that the desire to learn should not be limited to one thing. It’s okay to want to know more about our world.  My Dad and I did not get along yet it is interesting how much he influenced me.

Now that I’m in my senior years my interests go from one thing to another. I crochet and knit and make jewelry. I’m learning to sew, love to write, photograph my dogs, and, of course, train my dogs.  I am the embodiment of the saying, “Jack of all trades, master of none”.  But you know what?  That’s okay  because I’m having a blast learning new things.

If you see me flitting from one shiny object to another that does not mean that I’ve left the first shiny object.  It means that in my cluttered mind I’m thinking about future projects.  Sometimes my mind is like a Pinterest app and sometimes it’s like something from one of the cable hoarding shows.

Recently I went online to Google, quotes and entered the search words, “The creative mind”. What came up was a very interesting description of: A Creative Person.

While I’m knitting and listening to music I’m living with the characters of the book I’m trying to write. They have tears and laughter and fears and dreams and I work out their lives while knitting, then rush to the computer to give them life in my story.  Everything in my cluttered mind comes together, every stitch of yard, material, or beads have a life in my hands tell a story.  I’m finally good with where I’m at in my creative journey.  I don’t need validation like I did as a child.  If ya’all don’t like it that’s okay.  I’m good with that.  It’s the journey that counts, my creative journey and my life with my dogs that counts.  Come along for the ride or pass me by shaking your head.  It’s okay with me.

As I write more on my blog I’ll be glad to share a glimpse of my cluttered, creative, sometimes twisted mind.  If you see me sitting absently looking off into space at a dog show know that I am communing with one of the characters in my book.  They are such endearing people but oh, how much trouble they can get into.  Perhaps they too are Jack of all trades, masters of none.  Maybe they too are intricate, normal people just like me.  I hope you get to meet them someday.