Plenty of things have happened in the space of one year, including graduating from the RCA, getting married, going freelance, getting a job, quitting a job, teaching, writing, publishing, moving out....in amongst having the timely crisis of an arts and humanities graduate with the what-the-hell-am-I-going-to-do moment.
So in lieu of this, let me have a moment to reflect. 2017 has been the happiest I've been in a long time, but also points where I've caught myself burnt out, miserable, questioning etc. etc. In December, I had some time to process the year - work had slowed down, J and I had just moved in together on our own, and I could just sit and think for a bit, mostly about who I am and what I want to be in this world.
This blog starts again as a place for me to spew out things I need to say, to myself more than to anyone else, but if anyone still reads this you can come along for the ride. It might also be somewhere I can come to to return to illustration and making things, something that I yearn for actually as I spend more and more time alone tapping away on a computer. The heaps of paper, and slowly drying out materials is all waiting for me to pick up where I left off, and maybe its a chance to make some more sketchbooks, go on more outings, take some more photos, weave, sew, I don't know. I just don't want to forget that those things make me happy, and one of the reasons why I've ended up where I am now.
Also, especially now as I have become a teacher, I want to make sure that I'm still practicing, learning, archiving, documenting, and reflecting on what I do - otherwise what's the point? None of this is just for the sake of it. None of it is 'work', rather its LIFE. I think often this part of me is mistaken for a goal-oriented, take-everyone-down personality, but it's just who I am. It's just what I've always done. I shouldn't have to keep convincing people about it, and reminding myself that actually, you're okay, nothing is wrong with what you're doing.
And so, little blog of mine, 2018 is for this. Slowing down and doing things for me. I think a return to this is what I need, and keep tabs on what I'm doing and how I'm feeling. I'm excited for the ride.
