I didn’t get around to buying a Christmas tree this year, but I painted one today and I really like it.
This Full Moon has really been getting to me, but some good things also happened. My owl painting found its way to the perfect person – someone for whom owls have special meaning. I also painted a new cow, because cows are also very special to me. And Cinderella is having a wonderful Christmas in Barcelona.
There’s more. Today this lady called to ask where she could buy my books because she needed one right away. I invited her over and she got all 3 of my Galveston novels. I very much enjoyed and appreciated the fact that someone’s mini crisis involved getting copies of my books stat, and that I could actually help her out.
It’s been such a strange year and sometimes I feel like I’m back in the same place I was last year – some of my thoughts and resolutions are similar. But then I am reminded that there has been meaningful progress: I sold more books this year than any year before. I recorded The Glory Days of Aimée Bonnard as an audiobook despite the Kickstarter campaign not getting funded. I went to a few places I had never been. I am working on the 5th draft of a novel that will be my most magical one yet. A lot of paintings met the right people, and I produced a lot of art I love this year. Of course, the million dollar question is, am I growing as an artist? Are my paintings getting better, not just more skillfully done, but more meaningful, more personal, and more able to evoke emotion? Sometimes I get lost in the hustle and forget about that. But I never forget about it for more than a day, or more than an hour, really. So let’s count not losing sight of what’s truly important among this year’s wins.
Also, speaking of perspective: It’s barely the beginning of December. I think the race to decorate, shop, celebrate, consume, etc. has gotten us to forget that the year is not over. There are weeks ahead in which good things can happen and hopefully will. Maybe we should put the balance sheets away and just try to have a nice time?
