1. July Studio
2. Contentment
3. July Links
4. Wrap-Up
This month I'm a little late, but it was Carnival on St. John...so that means the whole island stops for a week to celebrate! Festivities actually start about a month before and it all leads up to the weekend before July 4th. July 4th begins at 4AM with Jou'vert and then ends with fireworks that night. And of course, you then need another week to recover from all that excitement. So that brings me to the middle of July...and I bet for many of you, the time is flying just as fast. Before living on St. John, summertime meant tons of activities, traveling, sports--a whirlwind of stuff crammed in before the fall. Here, though, it's off-season. Town is (now) quiet; the snowbirds are off-island, activity is slow during the warm days. This past month was super special as my dad came to visit. Spending half his vacation on Dominica and then half here with me, it was strange and fun to "show off" my attempts at being an "adult", working and creating a living here. I swear, I still feel like I'm 12 years old most of the time...now I understand what people mean when they say they don't feel their age. Do you ever feel like you're really an "adult"? I hope not.
May the warm sunshine inspire you to go squirt someone with a watergun. Enjoy your day.
Today more people than ever before yearn to make a contribution that makes a difference and defines who they are in a world of turbulent events and challenging times. Finding and creating a life that engages and drives our soul – that is the fundamental challenge confronting every individual in today’s modern society. No longer, it seems, are we satisfied with “doing whatever it takes” to simply stay employed and pay the bills. Life has to be about more than that now. We’ve learned too much, we’ve come too far. We just can’t “settle” for less anymore.
This is a good thing. This is what inspires dreams. This is what motivates us to set goals, work hard, and share in one another’s accomplishments. It only becomes troublesome if it causes you to never be content with your life.
Comparing ourselves to one another, to our relatives, to our colleagues is generally what causes us to feel contentment or dissatisfaction. Once again, comparison can be a good thing. We can “monitor” our progress based on what we value in other people’s situations. It’s when we get lost in the ideals of perfection, constantly reinforced by our media, that we start to feel inadequate. Or we lose touch with what’s realistic and forget how far we may have come already.
Being able to look at one’s life or situation with contentment and satisfaction—even gratitude—almost seems selfish. It’s rare to come across someone who is completely happy with their lives, rejoicing in what they live every day, while still being motivated to try new things. And that, in many cases, is a personal choice. Granted, some people’s situations are harsh and stressful. I’m talking about those of us who, on the whole, have “good lives”: our needs are provided for; we have food; we have shelter; we have family and friends; we have jobs. If you constantly bitch and moan without being thankful for just being able to work, to come home to a family or companion, to have food to eat…it couldn’t hurt to simply acknowledge that your situation could be much worse. Comparison in that way can be motivating and enlightening. For lack of sounding like a Pollyanna, you really can find good if you choose to look for it.
Looking at your life, your career, your relationships, your current situation, it’s certainly a good thing to have aspirations or see needs for improvements. If not, what are you getting up for each day? But it’s an even better thing to see what’s working, what you’re proud of, and what you’re grateful for. Because that’s what makes each day worth living in the long run.
Valdes Creative
The website of a fellow artist/designer whose website is fun, simple and refreshing--as are his illustrations.
http://www.valdescreative.com
Plug-Ins.Com, digital tools for digital artists
A resource for industry news, downloads, event and reviews helpful to anyone in the design/multi-media field.
http://www.pluginz.com/
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Asolare Design
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