Their pre school teacher had concerns that the fastidious twin was over taking the creative one a bit too much. I see the fastidious girl as a future scientist or possible CEO of a company with all the qualities of a phenomenal leader! The teacher expected the parents to dissuade what was referred to as bossy behaviour..
I have such a passion for children. I suggested my friends direct that beautiful leadership energy down the right path instead of viewing and reprimanding it as bossy behaviour. As a parent I've always believed I was here to correct my child, not crush her spirit!
Rarely, if ever, was the word "creative" mentioned on a report card. I played the piano, cooked well at a young age, crocheted at eleven, sewed, sang in several choirs, wrote and preformed a song for a play, was active in neighbourhood sports, yet most teachers, (not all) took my positive qualities and turned them into a negative. One can only wonder how things would have been if my many assets had been encouraged.
It's no wonder it took fourty seven years for me to start dabbling in paint! I'm so pleased the twins have parents who will do what they know to be right for their girls. Directing them in a positive way, making small corrections when need be and celebrating all their differences and triumphs!
Were you labeled as a child? Was it positive or negative? How did you deal with it?
34 comments:
Love you post! You should have been labeled as a little wonder girl! My family always called me a freak because I liked to be creative! Hugs, Valerie
Wonderful post !
I was labelled because I was a chubby little girl.Nowadays it is called bullying but it taught me to be strong and fight.Kids/teens can be very cruel but I still think we have to go through some lessons to understand some things.Karma is the right word for that.Love your vibrant art and your posts:they are always food for thought.
I agree. It is so easy for one or two negative comments to crush a spirit. My mom was an old school elementary teacher and she sort of crushed my arty spirit to be more practical. I will admit the practical side has paid off but it took me years and a personal tragedy to rediscover my arty side. I am glad I discovered it.
By the way, love your paintings this week, The froggy one made me smile for quite awhile.
I agree with Valerie. Your talents are many and they come across very well. Have a wonderful weekend.:)
I don't recall being labeled but I know my son was. It was hurtful. Your post is certainly something to ponder. Even as adults we tend to categorize people, which in many cases is wrong. I'm so glad that you were able to escape the label and freely do your art, even if it took years to do.
You are right. Many teachers just want quiet sheep to go through the day faster. I practically lived at my kids school for that reason! I have tons os stories about that, more than I care :oP
All your creatures here are fantastic hehehe
A Very nice and creative work!
oh wow-I LOVE your colorful and quirky characters! It may have taken you a long time to find and nurture your creative self but I am ever so thankful that you have and that you can now relish in your artistic dreams. I must say that although I grew up in a toxic household - of all us kids (5)I was the one who was supported and praised by whatever I did because I truly was a "good" girl and got excellent grades and was always creative thanks to my grandmothers and a few good friends. It wasn't always so good and I had my own battles being bullied but I kept the faith. Have a great weekend my friend!
luv the birdie, cute; have a nice weekend
much love...
Great quirky and fun characters, just the kind I like!
your story is so similar to mine. I was bullied (due to being so shy and quiet) I had first and second grade teachers who were fired for abuse...so that was tough. I was in a fog until third grade and then I just didn't get anything academic. Creative and artistic were bad words, just like for you!! Thanks goodness I persevered and made it out as an artist and happy about that, just like for you!!
Happy Paint Party Friday!
Tam Hess
I don't think creativity was at all valued when I was at school, our primary objective was to learn how to earn a living and maybe that's not such a bad thing. Today it seems to have gone too far the other way. But I agree that positive qualities were often supressed and that was not so good.
I love your fantasy creatures here in all their colours, my favourite is the bird.
Thanks for another thought provoking post.
Lovely post! Happy PPF!
A very thought-provoking post. I think I was very lucky because my parents and teachers always supported my artistic endeavors.
Such fun and whimsical characters as always! Hope you're having a lovely weekend!
hearing your experiences makes my former art teacher's heart ache... and i am hoping things are different now... over here music, drama and art play a huge role in education, though more so at Private schools like the one Phoebes went to where she had specialist teachers in all of those areas from the age of 8...
creativity always wins out though and your innate nature won through all that negativity and helped you to raise a creative and interesting child who has become such a fabulous adult... I think they made you creatively resilient without knowing it...
nice art to go with your thoughtful post. I was lucky I had a strong mom and she never tried to tell me what to do, I was free to make my own decisions.
I was lucky my mom was strong, but she never tried to tell me what to do. I was able to make my own decisious. Nice art to go with your post. Google seems to be eating my comments so sorry if this is a repeat!
Great post! I too, had a teacher that put me in the "dummy row," because I had trouble in math. I grew up in a very creative household with music and dance but it was never encouraged in terms of trying to make a living at it. I had twins. I have never steered them in any direction other than to do or be something that made/makes them happy. Love your creatures. I love that they are unique and weird and have something to say. :)
How wrong can teachers be! Their role is to develop a child's qualities and therefore make them confident individuals. I am so saddened that your creativity was not recognised as you have it in bundles! I think I was lucky My parents encouraged me to art college and spent money keeping me there when my peers all went to get full time jobs. Back then university was only for the wealthy and non of my family before me had done anything like that. I took it for
granted and wish at the time I had appreciated the sacrifices made for me.
What cute paintings and a lovely post.
I'm sorry your creativity was not nurtured as a child. I remember my mother telling me, "Authors never make any money until after they are dead." She was just trying to protect me from what she saw as a dead-end career.
When other girls in the school yard were sharing their career aspirations (nurse, teacher, etc.) and I said I wanted to be a writer, someone replied, "That's stupid."
When I had my first story published my dad said, "Why don't you get a real job?"
Then, just when I seemed on the verge of publishing my first novel, the hard blows of life blew everything away.
It's hard to overcome obstacles, but when creativity is in your DNA, it will pop to the surface in every way possible. You can't keep it down.
The obstacles that shriveled my writing caused me to discover fresh expressions of creativity. When I couldn't write I could make cards. When I had no time for that I drew on scraps while I took phone calls at work. An artist admired my sketches and put a paint brush in my hand; something I would never have thought about doing. I can write again now, plus I have much more than when I could only write.
I am glad you are painting and that you too have discovered so many diverse expressions of your creative DNA.
love your creatures this week! So glad you managed to overcome the labels that were put on you, and that you kept going your own unique way. I don't really remember being labeled as a child, but I know people have been regarding me as the "strange" one, because I never did/do things the "normal" way. But it never stopped me from doing what I wanted. I think it's sad how little attention is given in schools to characteristics like creativity and compassion. I think it's better nowadays than when I was a kid, but still not enough. And very much dependant on the teacher ....
Oh lovely post here again! Children just need encouragement in all they do, I had great parents always backing me up, though they weren't into art or creative pursuits, so that really took off on my own in my university years and has grown from there!
your post brought back memories for me. i was always told that i daydreamed too much. at the time, all I could think was "what's wrong with that?"
There should be categories for all the talents such as creativity and leadership on report cards! Love the bright colors and especially the expression of the frogs face!
I was also a chubby kid and was really treated badly. No teacher ever came to my rescue and the kids were never taught not to "bully" me or the other kids. I wonder what became of those mean kids. Some of them I am sure are in prison. LOL They were really bad!!!!
I do like all the creatures of yours.
Nicole/Beadwright
Another one of your lovely posts that took me back to my childhood. I wanted to pursue art or psychology but my parents were not very encouraging. Art was something that was not related to academics and psychology was related to crazy people. Anyways I'm thankful that I never let go of art though I couldn't learn it professionally.
Thank you so much for your birthday wishes Sherrie.
Wishing you a wonderful and creative week
Hugs
Susan
Oh my gosh that first image is just hilarious and adorable! What wonderful teeny bird houses and that funny creature! I prefer the top color scheme. :)
Your posts are so thought provoking! Your paintings are a lot of fun, they have such energy!
It is always interesting popping over here to see how you intertwine your quirky fabulous art into your thought provoking stories. Enjoy your week. :-)
Labels are like boxes...they keep us contained. I don't like them! I don't recall hearing labels put on me but I wasn't encouraged either. I loved art but no one ever encouraged me to pursue it. Like you, I was much older when I finally got into art. I guess better late than never.
As always, your posts are wonderful Sherri.
I wasn't encouraged in art, wish I had been. I think it's important to listen and see what your kids are drawn to and encourage them to follow their heart and dreams and to choose wisely.
Love the art.
Annabelle
I cringe when I think about my childhood years. I had an art teacher who would take the pencil out of my hand, and draw for me..because she could do it better than me, of course. Ow. I'm a late bloomer, also, because I never had confidence in myself. But now..NOW is completely different, huh? We've come a long way, baby. There's no stopping us now. :)
what alucky family to have to such unique children and very fortunate to have a clear positive thinking friend such as YOU! I always love your work it has such a great message to each piece, that goes far beyond the pigment of paint!
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