Baby Reindeer Red Nose Northern Lights Watercolor Illustration Painting
By Charlie

Big Dreams

Written by Charlie O'Shields

For our prompt of “Stag” today, my mind drifted into a holiday mood, and so I ended up with a little reindeer. As a kid, I always loved the story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and used to sing that song all of the time. It’s a lovely underdog story of trying to fit in and how, sometimes, the features that make us feel different are actually our most wonderful features of all. As a creative person, I grew up always feeling a bit different. My mind just worked in a way that wasn’t very common. I had wild ideas and even bigger dreams of what I’d like to do in the world. And, I’ve still not yet fulfilled all of the dreams of that little boy with big blue eyes, but there’s still time. Luckily, I’ve not really grown up yet, and I still believe with all of my heart that with a little creativity and lots of hope, anything at all is possible.

Indeed, another thing I tend to wish for a lot is more time. It seems so fleeting and there never seems to be enough time in the day to accomplish all that I would like to achieve. But, I’ve learned that taking just a bit of time to move projects forward means at least some will get completed one day. As a kid, I’d happily leap between projects and I never seemed to mind that some got left behind in my enthusiasm. Indeed, enthusiasm is one of the most important things to make something happen. So, if I find myself truly excited about doing something, it’s usually always worth chasing that path. It’s a happy path that I can skip down gleefully and I always find myself full of energy. When something feels a bit dull to me, I avoid that path as I know it’s not too likely that I’ll be able to see it through to completion anyway.

Though I can’t magically add more hours to the day, I can make the most of the ones I have. And most of all, I can keep imagining those crazy ideas that spin through my mind. It’s fun to explore possibilities whether they are real or simply imagined. Just like when I was a wide-eyed little boy singing holiday songs, I can still tap into that feeling when I try. It’s a state that reminds me of all of the things that sparkle with magic and light. And, as the glow of the holiday season heads my way, my heart is filled with thoughts of love and happiness. Tonight, I’ll enjoy another warm and wonderful evening with my husband and our finicky little dog. Perhaps we’ll light some candles as the sun disappears again, seemingly too soon. In that glow, I’ll be reminded once again that no idea is too crazy and magic is always just a wish away, as long as I keep dreaming those big dreams.

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 Baby Reindeer Red Nose Northern Lights Watercolor Illustration Painting Sketchbook Detail

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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29 thoughts on “Big Dreams”

  1. Wonderfully festive Charlie! The warm weather has left us here, mid 40s today. We only worked outside briefly. I worked a bit on three abstract paintings that I have going. Too much time on the computer lining up new ways to promote my paintings. We are relaxing this evening. Hope that you are thoroughly enjoying your weekend!

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  2. Yup Charlie, I wrote in my creativity memoir just that about the wild child (as cited by Judy Reeves in Wild Women, Wild Voices (NWL 2015). This child was ratted out by a teacher who told my parents that Linda has a wild imagination. Thank God. Hehehhehe it serves me yet. People were not ready for kids who were different (aka smarter than that teacher). Carry on Charlie and don’t ever grow up.

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    1. Grow up? I have heard those words all of my life, but I don’t know what they mean? haha haha 😂 When my 3 younger cousins were kids, I played with each of them at the games that they liked. Oh, by the way, I was in college. haha haha The youngest one was the one that I played with the most. She was about 9 or 10. We would chase each other around the house, wrestle, and have tickle fights. She had chubby arms and I would yell, “Corn on the cob!,” and gnaw on her arm. She would howl and laugh out loud! My aunt’s family would get so angry and upset with me. Apparently, I was too old to be playing with the kids. My aunt and uncle thought it was funny. The only downside was that the kids saw me like an over-sized kid with her own car. The kids forced me to sit and eat at the kids’s table for Thanksgiving with them. I had fun with them and I gave them memories that they will never forget.
      Charlie, the Lord promises that He always saves the BEST for last; your BEST days are ahead of you. The BEST is yet to come. Growing up doesn’t mean to shut down or to stop living. Or dreaming. Or having fun. Or laughing out loud. I have yet to grow up and probably never will. And I am okay with that. 😀😋

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      2. Yay for never growing up! 😃💕 hehe… I don’t think we should ever bother. It’s much more fun! And it’s so fun to play and be silly, good for you! Yeah, some people are just too serious, and I’ve always found those people a bit boring.

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  5. I was born on December 17th. Near to the shortest day of the year. Joe was born on June 19th. Near to the longest day of the year. But we are also both right there at the turn when my days begin to lengthen, and his shorten. These vagaries of the calender seem to fit our personalities. Funny how that worked out. November has been speeding past and even though I think Covid should be slowing things down, that does not seem to be the case.

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  9. So darling! Like always, the coloring on this is beautiful. I always have a lot of projects going. I know depending on my mood they will eventually get done….some day. That is what is so wonderful about being a creative soul, there is always something we can do!

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  10. Hello Charlie,

    The Doodlewash is magical, dreamy and so calming. And a big THANK YOU for writing this post.. about the belief in magic and hope resulting in something. I really needed to hear this. Not that there’s anything wrong in my life. I have tons to be grateful for (and I am) but like you said, when you believe in magic, you kind of stick out like a sore thumb. So it feels very reassuring to see you say these things. Thanks a lot. I feel like sending you a Thank You hug.. so I have. 🙂

    Love,
    Mugdha

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