Simply..strong?....

8/1/2020

Strong is my word for 2020.

Sometimes I don't .feel strong. Sometimes I scare myself with the ideas I come up with!

Like when I had my first exhibition.

I was working at beautiful Beningbrough Hall and looked at an exhibition of paintings in the gallery there and thought I could do that. (I hadn't painted for years.) So I went to the administrator and said, diffidently, Do you think maybe I could have an exhibition here one day? Vaguely thinking a year or eighteen months away, knowing the gallery got booked way ahead. There's just been a cancellation for August - I'll put you down said Ray. This was May.

I came down the stairs from that office feeling a bit shaky and thinking What have I just done?

The exhibition was a great success and I painted and exhibited for the next twenty years.

Can you think of a time when you were thrown in at the deep end, or jumped in yourself as I did, and found that actually you could swim?

Scary, but exciting...

10 Comments

Gail

9/1/2020 03:31:42 am

Thank you for sharing your personal story of guts. Glad it worked out well.

Freda

9/1/2020 04:42:19 pm

Thank you Gail.

julia

9/1/2020 05:13:07 am

Oh absolutely! For sure! The question i have is this one, Freda....what really drove this incident? Did you initiate it or was the universe creating an opening for you..and suddenly the words popped out of your mouth?...somehow, the seed had already been planted for this ball to get rolling...who can know? But you took the chance and ran with it, and your life has never been the same. This has happened to us over and over in our lives We’ve changed direction suddenly (or so it seemed) and it has worked out. The hardest one for me was when i was asked to chair the hospital ball for 500 people...i was stunned that they asked me and really tried to say no, but i was “coerced”! And yes, i did it, it was a success and gave me a lot of confidence for other opportunities that have arisen since....go for it, Freda!

Freda

9/1/2020 04:45:42 pm

As you say Julia, who knows how these things happen! But they do, and often, And I have mever regretted acting on these impulses...yet, Well done for the ball and as you say it gives you confidence to have stretched yourself. Who dares wins Barry used to say.

Lucille link

9/1/2020 07:23:53 am

Yes I remember two moments when my life changed direction - both because of unrehearsed decisions to say or do something. I am not brave and both times I acted out of character and in spite of innate cautiousness. They both worked out well.

Freda

9/1/2020 04:47:08 pm

Most people seem to find these kinds of decisions work out well. Isn't it interesting?

Mary

9/1/2020 09:56:59 am

Love how you stepped up to meet your mission in art.

As for me, too many to count. Though I will say at some of the toughest points in my life, I got a little tired of people telling me I was the strongest person they knew. Sometimes, I didn't want to have to be that person. But looking back I can see now I not only survived, but thrived.

Freda

9/1/2020 04:48:48 pm

And grew and lived fully I am sure.

Viv link

9/1/2020 02:48:54 pm

I like your word - I think it fits perfectly and from what I know of you Freda - you are a strong person and I hope your strength this year will help you to carry on painting and exhibiting.

Freda

9/1/2020 04:49:53 pm

Thank you Viv. I have just signed up for a big solo exhibition!

Simply..strong?....

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