Rachel Funk Heller ~ Social Alchemy: Celebrating the Creative Spirit

Okay, so it’s week 25 and as you can see I have completely missed about a month’s worth of work. And I’ve come to the conclusion that I am okay with that. I realize I’d been coming up with excuse after excuse for not meeting my self imposed deadline and therein lies the rub. I created this “Drawing a Day” idea to spur me on and to give me a goal to focus on. What I discovered was that I actually put myself under a whole load of stress that wasn’t serving me very well.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’ll admit, I have a problem with perfectionism. If I can’t get it right, I worry. If I don’t get it done on time, I worry more. And I end up wasting a whole bunch of energy worrying and fretting and fussing as opposed to enjoying the process of drawing. Of finding images I’d like to draw, of looking at the world through different eyes.

I have also been given the opportunity to take on a very exciting project. You may have read my previous post about my high school drama teacher, Jim Nakamoto. It turns out that we raised enough money to bring back the McKinley Theatre Group to the school, next spring the group will mount a production of “Godspell Jr.” I have volunteered to be the show’s producer and to help lay the foundation, to build on the past success of the group and to help bring the magic of theatre to a new generation of students.

It’s a big job and I’m thrilled to be doing it. But something has to “give” and I decided that trying to do a drawing a day and posting the work is what will take a side line. I’m also working on my writing projects (more to be revealed soon) and honestly, I find that drawing is really more like a quiet meditation. I find when I let go of my perfectionism, and let the lines go where they may and enjoy seeing the colors blend on the page, it’s a wonderful, calming experience. I love showing my work, but I want to just be energized by the process and not worry so much about deadlines.

Thus I have changed the category of these posts. Not to worry, there will be more artwork posted soon. And just for grins, here are a few drawings when I first started taking my drawing class:

From the first day

I loved how the flower seemed to be pointing itself to the sun.

And there will be more interviews with artists and friends. Thank you so much for your patience. See you soon in the land of social media, and thanks so much for stopping by.