Blocking out the noise

As I mentioned in my previous blogs, I decided to dip my toes into other avenues in the art world, applying for my first artist residency and entering two juried art shows. I was supposed to hear about the artist residency the day we returned home. Crickets. I woke up to a form letter rejection email. Oof. That stung. There were tears. The next day came the first juried show rejection, followed by another two days later. There were more tears. After serving as a subject matter expert in my former career, rejection isn’t something I’m used to, and now I’d hit the rejection trifecta in a one-week period. Ouch. I reached out to my art mentors questioning my worth as an artist. The words I’ve used to coach and guide staff, family, and friends over the years now returned to me via people I trust and love - with grace, gentleness, and resolve - that this is part of the process and that these were not the doors for me right now. Sometimes having those you love mirror back to you what you know deep inside makes all the difference. 

Like with everything else in life, we find our true worth within ourselves. It’s easy to forget that when we get emotionally rocked by something we really want, like I did. When we block out the noise, tune in, remember, and reset, the next iteration of our evolution begins.

Keep creating.