Blank Canvas

I bought a yard of canvas today. What can I say, I felt inspired. I was actually out on the hunt for a cute white apron to take back with me to Honduras, but ended up with a yard of canvas and a fabric marker.  What will I do with this fabulous yard of fabric you ask? Well, my plan is to have each of my current students add a character/cartoon animal to the canvas and just wait and see what happens. Kinda like a huge keepsake that I can frame later. They have the coolest little sketches. You know, the ones that kids doodle when they don't want to pay attention during their normal core-classes. I'm excited about it. There are so ways that this canvas can be transformed.
     I held onto the canvas while standing in the check out line and made a life connection. Some would say that I am an artist. (I wold say that I just really have a passion for creativity.) I tend to see things for the beauty that they could be rather than what it is. I see the potential. And when dealing with a blank slate, oh my, sometimes it can be overwhelming. Pre-college graduation I was a HUGE life planner. I liked knowing what was going to happen, when it would happen, times, who would be there, what to wear, etc. I was very detailed oriented about every event that was planned. And when there were no plans, whew... watch out world! I would stress myself out so much - it was exhausting. At that time, in my head, the plan was to graduate, get married, move, start teaching and begin the next chapter of life. Then my life hit the washing machine.
     Pre-college graduating I was wiped clean. My canvas, or actually more like a roadmap, was put in the washer. All of the details, trails, markings, doodles, stickers, etc were washed away and until the canvas dried was I able to breath again and begin a second chance at creating a masterpiece.
     My second chance was a struggle. I wanted it to be the same as the art that I had previously created. There's no such thing. I had to start over and this time MY planning was going to take me nowhere. So I held onto the brush and waited. (I did a lot of waiting.) Before I knew it, the blueprint was being constructed.
     There I was, holding onto a blank canvas and waiting with anticipation to see what would come of the artwork. As I waited, He delivered. My Creator created. And I feel more than blessed to have been on this artistic journey, recreating a masterpiece out of a washed canvas. Now, don't get me wrong, it's no fun starting from scratch. But it's the process that makes the end result so enjoyable. It's all about the events that occur in the in-betweens that bring it all together. (I hope that made some sense.) It's really exciting.
     And I'm excited. While all of that was just a metaphor, my students now have the opportunity to create a masterpiece out of a blank canvas. Who knows what this will look like three months from now, but I am expecting great things from them. In a way this is my life. A continuous drawing on a blank canvas.