amateur

our first sunday in ohio a tornado warning went off during the third hour of church...we all gathered in the hallway till we got the okay to go home.  i just remembered that with all this crazy wind today.

anyway, for the months of september and october i took a beginning painting class from a local artist in downtown columbus.  i have zero background in painting.  i took ceramics in high school and that's the extent of my fine arts background.  but i've always wanted to learn how to paint and it was pretty inexpensive, so i signed up and went for three hours every week to paint with a bunch of retired women.  i think i was the most inexperienced painter there, but i loved it.  i learned to go out of my comfort zone (big time), i learned to be patient with myself, but also with the painting process, and most of all, i learned that there's a lot i need to learn.

my very first painting from class.  still unfinished.

a lot of times my instructor would tell me to take a step back from my painting and look at it from a few feet away.  it was crazy how much that changed your perspective and made you realize your painting actually looks really good...or really terrible.  when i'd get stuck or hate the way something was turning out, my much more experienced instructor always seemed to know exactly what i needed to do to give my painting dimension or to separate the flowers or whatever needed to be changed.   

my third (also unfinished) painting

i realized i'm an amateur in a lot of aspects of my life--as a student, a wife, a daughter, sister, and especially as a disciple.  sometimes i get so wrapped up in my own little world that i forget to take a step back and remember the big picture.  that's why i'm so grateful for my life instructor.  our Heavenly Father has been there and done that.  He really does have all the answers.  i'm grateful for the scriptures that guide me and help me understand what the finished product i'm working for is.  i'm grateful for the holy ghost who gently instructs me on how to change.  and most of all, i'm grateful for the Savior who gives me the ability to actually make those changes.  Heavenly Father has something more beautiful than we can imagine in store for us.  we have the tools to create it, we just need Him to teach us how to use them.

my first painting without an instructor telling me what to paint and how to paint it.