Alyice on March 8th, 2008

Goodbye Fear Of Waste

As I prepare my mind to accept that fact that next week is all about developing new habits and new ways of doing things—such as art and photography first, exercise second, and business third—I can’t help but stop to think about something Manuela Valenti said in an interview I did with her this past week. She said that the Painting A Day Project “has been a constant learning experience, mainly for the fact I’ve defeated my fears with respect of painting while tapping different subjects matters.”

Manuela Valenti, Artist

Meet Manuela

Manuela Valenti, Artist

Buy Manuela’s Art

Manuela, an artist who has been painting since she was 12 years old, and has many successes selling her paintings, still had fears that sometimes stopped her from trying something new. But instead of allowing those fears to take control, she accepted them for what they were and moved forward with her art; which resulted in the sale of one of her paintings for the sum of $3,500!

Fear. It has the ability to stop one from moving forward with life, from capitalizing on positive associations, from reaching out to others, and from trying new things. But where does it come from? And why does it have so much power?

Yes, I had a fear of my own; a fear that is unlike traditional fear. But I say had, in the past tense, because today I resolve to say goodbye to that fear and make way for a new way of thinking.

For you see, I don’t have a problem with trying new things. In fact, I thrive on it. I love learning. I even like making mistakes because it means that there is one less thing I can goof up. I don’t even have a fear of failure; though some say I do have a fear of success.

What I do have, at this very moment, is a fear of waste. Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it, to fear being wasteful? Especially since I can’t even count the times I’ve been wasteful over the past 18 years of my life.

But the more I realize how much waste has affected our lifestyle, the ecosystem, and our finances I can’t help but be more conscious about the things we buy and the things we throw out.

Seriously, I am one of those people that can find a purpose for everything and cannot stand sending anything to the local dump unless absolutely necessary—like packaging from products, shoes that can no longer be repaired or worn, and so on. Paper gets shredded and used for the bottom of a hamster cage, or left whole for the lining of the bird cage. Used magazines get placed on the library’s “free-for-all” table. Books and videos I can no longer tolerate watching get donated to the local library, sold at a used store, or shipped off to family and friends. And if we haven’t used something within a year’s time it is donated to charity, sold at a garage sale, or given to someone who could use it. I am even of the mentality that if you bring something new into the house, you must get rid of something, thus preventing clutter. Heck, if I am going to be totally honest, at this time I only own one pair of tennis shoes and one pair of dress shoes—now that’s saying something coming from a woman, doesn’t it?

So my fear isn’t about failing. It isn’t about trying something new and having difficulty with the paints, the techniques, or the subject matter. It isn’t even about someone not liking what I do. But it is totally about wasting resources, money, and time. All commodities I have so little of these days.

In the past, every time I sat down to play with my art, I couldn’t help but think, “What if what I paint is so hideous it can only be meant for the trash? What if I use supplies and materials only to discover that the piece is worthless? What if I waste time and money on something I wouldn’t even put in my own home?” And thus, began the stifling block that ends all creativity.

But the more I reflect on Manuela’s words, “I’ve defeated my fears”, the more I realize how crazy that is! How can I ever hope to grow and improve as an artist if I allow fear of waste to stop me before I’ve even had a chance to try?

And then today it hit me. One of the things I love about mixed media art is that artists use items that would otherwise be thrown away to help complete their art projects! So if I don’t like something, big deal! If it’s not liked by someone else and can’t get sold, donated, or given away, big deal! I can always break it up into pieces to be used for art at a later date. Right?