Written by When someone is described as having been born with a “silver spoon” in his mouth, our prompt for today, it usually refers to someone who’s very wealthy and has lead a privileged life. This is something completely foreign to me, so it was a good opportunity to check some dessert. I may not have had much money growing up, but we always had dessert and that made me feel like I was rich. In truth, my father worked a blue collar night shift and my mother took on extra work as a seamstress. It honestly wasn’t until high school that I discovered that we didn’t have as much money as many of the other families in our city. My mom made many of the clothes I wore to grade school herself, but by the time I was a teenager, fashion had brand names. Names I didn’t really know or recognize, but names dropped by other teenagers as the latest and greatest thing to wear. Many of these kids had indeed been born with a silver spoon in their mouth and didn’t think twice about buying everything they wanted. I remember wearing lots of cheap knock-off fashion in order to fit the times, but it always felt like a costume one might wear for Halloween. I just didn’t care about what was “in” and instead loved to do my own thing. Maybe this was my inner artist screaming for a bit of individuality or maybe just my insatiable curiosity for all things unique and different.
Today, we live in a world of trends fueled by the Internet. A host of memes appear every now and again, and to be honest, some are rather fun! I’ve participated in a few trends on Instagram, like posting your top nine posts for the year, but mostly I just do my own thing. Our monthly art challenges are just prompts that come with the friendly reminder to always paint and draw whatever inspires you most! I think my childhood shaped everything about how I approach art. I didn’t like being told I was wearing the wrong thing any more than I enjoy being told I’m painting or sketching in the wrong way. So I just kept right on sketching and coloring in the way I loved most and when people asked me to share my tips, they ended up with a “you DO you!” Activity Book instead. I was actually quite terrified that a book devoid of step-by-step instructions, allowing people to just jump in and paint in their own unique style, would be seen as something wildly odd and horribly out of fashion. Stranger still, I wanted to create a book that worked well for adults and children both, which is a crazy thing to attempt. But, I’ve always loved Disney and Pixar movies and how they’re able to speak to both adults and children at the very same time. And though I was not a privileged kid, I had more dreams than anyone could count and I wanted to recreate the experience of going back to that time again.
Today, I received a video of a 5 year old drawing a tree frog in my book, which I posted in our tiny new Sketching Stuff group on Facebook. He was amazing, and it was so confirming to know that along with all of the pages from adults, I had managed to create something that was actually fun for people of all ages. But, what strikes me most is that I’ve realized that we were all born privileged. We all began our lives with a natural creativity and a confident approach to art. That’s a very rich power to possess indeed, so we were all very wealthy once. My hope has always been to inspire and help as many people as possible feel that way again. So, sure, I didn’t show up to teach you something you didn’t already know. Instead, I showed up to remind you of the talent you naturally possess. It’s why so much of this blog is about stories from childhood. They send us back to a place and time when we had less doubt and less fear. It’s indeed, the first step in learning how to make art. Reliving that very first step we all took as children. And, remembering to go back there each time our newest masterpiece doesn’t turn out as expected. As I say in my book, sketching should always feel fun, “when it doesn’t anymore, go back to the beginning and Sribble until it does!” It’s then that we can all adopt that special secret smile and join the club, knowing that each and every one of us was indeed once born with a silver spoon.
Want To Sketch Stuff With Me? Check Out My New Activity Book!
About the DoodlewashDa Vinci Paint Co.: Nickel Azo Yellow, Leaf Green, Quinacridone Red, Terra Cotta and Cobalt Blue. Lamy Al-Star Safari Fountain Pen with sepia ink in an A5 Hahnemühle Watercolour Book. Want to purchase a print of this doodlewash? Send me a note with a link to this post, and I’ll add it to my shop! |
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Your Sketching Stuff book is fantastic and I’ve loved seeing what others are doing in it. That video of the 5 year old was amazing! He was doing as well as most of us, and I think he got the idea behind the exercise better than we did, lol!
Thanks, Sandra!! 😃💕Yeah, the 5 year old make me SO happy… I thought a bi-level book was impossible, but turns out nothing is. But, yeah, 5 year olds have the advantage as they already know how to Scribble, Doodle, Color! hehe
Yum and nice spoon besides.
Your dessert looks yummy! I like your essay today – it’s true that real value has nothing to do with money, and everything to do with love, imagination, and fun.
Thanks so much, Sharon! 😃💕 Glad you enjoyed this. Yeah, life is way more rewarding with love, imagination, and lots of fun!
You’ve got me searching my memory banks for images of my earliest art projects. Giant boxes in the basement crayon decorated to be okay houses/forts. I don’t remember coloring books, but I do remember colors, so we must have done something with them. Our neighbors, the McPeaks, had a play room, so the 5 neighborhood kids would get to do art stuff, and I have very strong memories of gluing thin cork gaskets and circles cut out to make the gaskets. There was a small family gasket factory in the neighborhood, so those must have been seconds from there. I’m certain there was lots more stuff, but I can’t remember it right now. I just know we were always busy doing stuff. I’m sure the refrigerator doors were buried under art!
hehe… I’m quite sure your refrigerator doors were blossoming with art! Sounds like you had lots of fun stuff around you, Lisa! 😃💕
Yammy , love the story very much.
Thanks.
Thanks so much, Snehlata! 😃💕 So happy you liked this my friend!
You reminded me of another childhood memory! I remember when I was very young 7 or 8, I drew a picture of my older brother laying in front of the tv. I remember showing it to my mom. She praised me like always, but this time I remember her sharing it with my dad and saying how good it was. She kept it in her jewelry box. This planted the seed in me, but only to disappear for some time. Thankfully, it resurfaced about 8 years ago and I haven’t stopped! Your desert looks good enough to eat!
Thanks so much, Lori! 😃💕 And I adore your story!! Yes!! See? We were all artists once. It’s just a matter of remembering what we used to know!
It does look good enough to eat…
Thanks so much! 😃💕
Too many folks born with those silver spoons in their mouths have cavities in their souls. Leave me with my dented spoons and forks and a bit of integrity intact – and maybe a bit of creativity as well. Great article, Charlie. As for that yummy dessert – have you ever thought how tough this is for your readers early in the day when celery doesn’t look so good? LOL
Thanks, Sharon! 😃💕 Glad you liked this… and yeah… I know many people read these in the morning, so my desserts are probably not nice for that. But, the kid in me thinks breakfast is the PERFECT time for dessert! lol YUM!
Loved seeing the video of the 5 year old!!! Great post, Charlie! Have never had much money but have never felt poor either and I think it has to do with having wonderful family and friends.
Yeah, wasn’t that video the coolest?! It was so validating since my entire book is based on our own natural progression at that age. He didn’t need the words… he already knew what to DO! So cool! 😃💕