Stepping out of the Studio

This is a totally non-art related post, but relevant nonetheless. I spent this past weekend camping by Lake Texoma with my Cub Scout son. I have to say I was very apprehensive about this trip. This was the first time my son & I camped by ourselves and it was the first time I had camped without my older daughter. She and I had our routine down for setting up the tent, preparing the inside, cooking, tear down, etc. To top it off, the Den leader's son sprained his ankle the night before so he and his mom canceled on camping with us. There was one other boy from our Pack but we didn't know him and he camped only 1 night.

So..we were on our own! Since I was in my usual state of preparedness, we left 2 hours late on Friday for the 1 1/2 hour drive smack in the middle of rush hour traffic. By the time we got to the Boy Scout camp, checked-in, unloaded gear, parked the van, and hauled the gear down into the campsite, it was dark! Nevertheless we set up the tent in record time. We were hungry and another pack was already cooking over the campfire so that gave us a little motivation.

The weekend went without a hitch. The best part of the trip was watching my 9 year old help set up a campsite on Friday, cook our supper Saturday, wash the dishes in a bucket, and take down the tent without any help on Sunday. I was impressed and so were the other adults camping with their scouts around us.

Ok..so where's the relevance to art? Was I inspired by my communing with nature? Did I compose countless landscapes from the beautiful surroundings? No, actually I never even took my sketchbook out of its travel bag. I didn't even take any reference photos. What I did get was some time to slow down and get out of my work. Having my studio at home means..I'm ALWAYS at work. I felt refreshed after being away from both of my jobs..artist and homemaker.

What was even more important...I found some new faith in myself and my abilities. I can't take all the credit for the trip..my son was an incredible partner; but even he told me, "You did all the work before and made it easy." I wasn't sure how I'd handle camping alone with 9 year old, no showers with 90+ degree heat, primitive latrines (smelly, spider ridden, nasty latrines!!) and our unpredictable Texas weather; but it all was so smooth that it was a lot of fun!

So, moral of the story...if you're unsure..give it a try. Whether its a new painting, a new idea, a new recipe or a camping trip...you're fear may be completely reasonable but it will be worth working through!

Of all the people I have ever known, those who have pursued their dreams and failed have lived a much more fulfilling life than those who have put their dreams on a shelf for fear of failure.
~Author Unknown