Life has a way of reminding me that I am always under construction, a work in progress. I am constantly changing and growing, working on projects and giving birth to new creations. But this reality becomes overwhelming at times. Building the life I want seems never-ending and getting there can be so tiresome. It’s as if, once I’ve finished molding one part of my life into the way I envision it, I either find something wrong with my creation and embark on reconstructing it or life happens and a part of my creation breaks and requires fixing.
This week I participated in another RAW artist showcase in Baltimore, Maryland. I arrived at the venue early, excited to build an amazing display of my artwork and art products. Prior to the show, I sent the show’s producer pictures of my last display and requests for the necessary things to recreate that display. The producer assured me that everything I asked for was available and would be waiting for me on the day of the show.
Once at the venue while constructing my display, I discovered that I did not receive anything I had requested to create what I had envisioned. Disappointed and discouraged, I wanted to pack up and go home.
Sensing my emotions, my wife and love-of-my-life sprang into action helping me reconsider the space I was allotted and creating a display out of the things we had at our disposal. We pulled tables together, hung products on balcony railings and leaned my artwork against the tables. We did what we could with what we had.
But the story did not end there; 30 minutes before show time, the show producer announced that the grid walls we were promised had finally arrived. We rolled up our sleeves, put our heads together and worked with the other artists around us to get show ready. As a united community, we retrieved the grid walls, constructed them with zip ties, put up artwork, t-shirts and bags on the new construction and rearranged furniture so that the grid walls fit near our display tables. All done in under thirty minutes! As my wife would say, “Teamwork makes the dream work!”
Clients came pouring into the venue and stopping by to check out what I had to offer. Conversations were struck, purchases were made, pictures were taken and things were moving pretty smoothly. Then, the sun began to set and darkness enshrouded us all! The show’s producer did not setup power cords for us to have electricity to run lights on our displays. My shoulders tensed and my mind began racing … How do I solve this new problem?
My wife found the show producer and told her about our newest problem. The show producer returned with a rubbermaid container full of extension cords, light bulbs, tape and power strips. She dropped the box and off she went! My love sprang back into action to lay power cords in and around several of the displays. She single handedly setup these cords for me and several other artists to have electricity to light our displays. She truly is my sunshine! Once lit, I went back to connecting with visitors, selling products and sharing my art with the world.
That evening, I learned that it’s okay to be under construction; life still continues amidst the building and rebuilding. I am grateful to God for my wife who co-creates and builds with me, springing into action when situations seem discouraging and hopeless! She helped me build an awesome display that night, and she’s always helping me build an amazing life with her. Thanks love for being you and co-creating my visions into our reality.
Be creative. Be patient. Be You!
