New Beginnings

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The Turkey Vultures and Crows in my neighborhood continue every day much like any other. But not us, we are the animals that mark out occasions, set aside times as significant and special. And this day, this time period, this ending of one year and beginning of another, is significant for us. It’s a distinct moment in the long thread of time and a chance to step back and objectively evaluate what’s been happening since we last looked at things.

It’s also an opportunity to be a beginner–to embark on new things. We’re all beginners at many different points in our lives, and that’s a good thing. Being a beginner gives us the chance to try things and expect to make mistakes, to accept that we won’t know how to do everything and get excited about doing something different–possibly difficult–and mastering it.
It also frees us to experiment and fail, learn from that trial, and get better at what we’re working on. It’s also an opportunity to be a beginner–to embark on new things. We’re all beginners at many different points in our lives, and that’s a good thing. Being a beginner gives us the chance to try things and expect to make mistakes, to accept that we won’t know how to do everything and get excited about doing something different–possibly difficult–and mastering it.

Pinch Pods-crackle

 

I found this great quote by Ira Glass, host of This American Life on Chicago Public Radio, that really sums up this feeling I’m talking about.
“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one piece. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”
Ira Glass

I so easily get caught in the every day ‘doing’ of life. One project seems to build on the next, or maybe it just happens next. Maybe it’s something new and different or maybe I just haven’t really looked.Because of this constant, busy, doing, it feels important to stop, and look at all the work I’ve made over the last year, and evaluate where exactly I am and where I want to go.

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If you’re feeling discouraged with your progress, in whatever realm, give yourself a moment to look objectively at your progress and know that it takes time to master things.

In ceramics it takes a REALLY long time to achieve mastery because there are a huge number of variables to learn about and some of them are out of your control.
So, let yourself be a beginner and bring some of that excitement for learning and willingness to experiment to the forefront. Then work hard and just stick with it!

 

 

Happy New Year everyone!

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