Juggling




This is Juggling. I have to be honest and tell you I'm not quite sure that I like how it turned out. I embroidered it for a call for artists at a gallery my friend belongs to. Didn't like it unframed, don't necessarily like it framed. So it's not going to the gallery. Probably wouldn't have shared it at this moment except I seem to be juggling myself at the moment. Too many balls up in the air and not enough rest to keep them all spinning.

I think that is the story of my life. Juggling my life as a mother, as a wife, as a housewife and as an artist. Never seem to satisfy anyone else or myself much of the time. I'm reading Thomas Moore's Dark Night of the Soul and it mentions how we have to accept ourselves warts and all and appreciate the beauty in life. So here I am warts and all, making a piece I don't really like that seems a great metaphor for my life. Except in real life there would be more balls on the floor, less in the air. And in artist life it would be a piece that I love. But juggling, juggling, juggling.

Always juggling. I think that is probably a great metaphor for many working women especially those that share the moniker of housewife along with their calling. Always trying to find the right balance between creativity and taking care of reality. It is usually so much more fun to be creative then it is to be realistic, but sometimes the roles are reversed and it isn't so much fun when one of your creations doesn't seem to look as good as an end product as it did in your head before you sketched it. And then you notice all the reality you didn't really notice.

So I guess that is the lesson of this blog post, to make life a little more balanced so that you can juggle all your persona's and still make art that you love or that you even like.

I think my juggling may come out of the frame and be refinished at a later date, but for now I'm going to keep it on my wall and see if it grows on me. And see if I can do a better job of juggling the rest of my persona's too and refinish them too. Blessings to all. Keep stitching.

Comments

Lynda Lehmann said…
Wonderful and honest post--full of your personal wisdom.

I think we all feel the same way. When my family (only one husband and one daughter--NEED me all the time, I tell my husband, "See, this is why there are so few great women artists." He laughs. But I'm not really joking...

THEIR time is sacrosanct, and mine is to be interrupted at a whim. They are wonderful people, but I do tire of always having to be available.

Thank you for sharing your feelings. If I were there I'd give you a hug.

I also like your metaphor. So keep on juggling, until more balls stay in the air! :)
Valaine said…
Thank you for this post :) I am on this journey of trying new things and taking better care of myself. I really get discouraged because I want the changes I make in my life to be instant - but I know better and I keep telling myself to be patient. The fear of never changing even though I try is what I battle most. I have to keep faith that God will honor everything that I do when I try my best. Juggling all my these things - the new ideas, exercising and keeping positive gets very tiring. What I get from your post is that I need to remember to accept myself where I am and continue to do the best that I can. To never give up.

*Thank you for your encouragement towards my work. I appreciate all your kind words :)
Becky said…
Sometimes work that has a lot of feeling in it reveals enough to make us uncomfortable. In a sense it can be our best work because it has a personal piece of us included. If you hang this piece in the gallery that the emotion will connect with someone. Keep Stitchin & Juggling
drea_dear said…
Thank you so much for your constant honesty. That's one of the reasons I keep coming back, because I see that you are thinking about the same things I am. I'm working to find balance. I'm always working to find balance. And it's very easy to neglect the dishes all over the kitchen counter and sit and work on my favorite WIP. But then it gets to be dinner time, and not only do I not have any clean pans, but there's no counter space for the pizza to be delivered. ;) So I guess today is a crock-pot day, so I can enjoy a clean counter top and dinner without stress, while I work on my biscornu exchange piece during nap time. I just have to get off the computer and take care of that.

On an artistic note, I can see why you would be uncomfortable displaying "Juggling". Not only is the subject personal, but the swirls of color within the figure and the balls tell the story of the turmoil you're feeling right now. I think you should take a step of faith. Maybe frame it without glass (if you're allowed) - I think the reflection of the glass separates the viewer from the turmoil. But share it. So far 4 strangers have been affected by it, through our computer monitors.

Keep inspiring.
Judy Olson said…
To me, it says "fewer balls would make the juggling easier", so I am going to try doing one less thing and see how it feels. Thanks for the inspiration!
drea_dear said…
One more short comment to say - I'm giving you an award! Stop by my blog to pick it up, and post it proudly!
Tangled Stitch said…
Thank you all so much for sharing your own juggling story. I've decided to keep it in the frame in my kitchen to remind myself to take some time for myself and being there for everyone else will be easier. Hopefully it will be a reminder for all my wonderful artistic friends to do the same.

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