Living Boldly
Yesterday was my son's fourth day in his new high school, so what did he decide to do? Run for freshman class vice president. We spent last night strategizing, making up slogans, and working on his poster designs to be among the first in the hallways this morning.
I'm so proud of him for many reasons, but in this case, it's because he's decided to live boldly. Coming from his tiny charter middle school, he only knew one person in this gigantic high school (he was one of 60 in his middle school class, and now is one of 600 in his freshman class). Undaunted, he's found a way to make friends, do something good for his classmates, and learn something along the way.
When I look at my own journey as an artist, I can count on on hand (and have some fingers left over) the times I made bold decisions. I've always been cautious by nature, preferring to reason things out, plan, and move methodically to a goal. Calculated risks are okay, but "wild" risk-ta
king has never been my strong suit. In my comfort zone, decisions made this way have worked out pretty well, but I wonder whether living more boldly would have taken my work in a more successful direction?
Robert F. Kennedy said it well: "Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
So, can I dare to fail greatly? Only time will tell, but I will endeavor to make the bolder choice, to take that leap into the unknown in the future.
And, if I falter, or think I'm losing my nerve, I'll have a great role model: my son.
I'm so proud of him for many reasons, but in this case, it's because he's decided to live boldly. Coming from his tiny charter middle school, he only knew one person in this gigantic high school (he was one of 60 in his middle school class, and now is one of 600 in his freshman class). Undaunted, he's found a way to make friends, do something good for his classmates, and learn something along the way.
When I look at my own journey as an artist, I can count on on hand (and have some fingers left over) the times I made bold decisions. I've always been cautious by nature, preferring to reason things out, plan, and move methodically to a goal. Calculated risks are okay, but "wild" risk-ta
king has never been my strong suit. In my comfort zone, decisions made this way have worked out pretty well, but I wonder whether living more boldly would have taken my work in a more successful direction?Robert F. Kennedy said it well: "Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
So, can I dare to fail greatly? Only time will tell, but I will endeavor to make the bolder choice, to take that leap into the unknown in the future.
And, if I falter, or think I'm losing my nerve, I'll have a great role model: my son.
Comments
And yes, I hope he wins too, but even if he doesn't, he'll have learned a great deal in the process. I'll keep you posted.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
I came by to let you know I posted the results of last weeks 13 Q's about Jury Duty - it's up at http://anyapples.blogspot.com/