Reflecting Light (Sea Turtle)
When I started drawing this turtle, I knew it would be the first in a series of sea creatures. However, every piece I create is not just a subject, but also represents something and as I create and philosophize about that representation both the piece and I change. This sea turtle is about reflecting light and what that means. This piece in particular was a big journey for me. I often start the piece, but the art piece finishes me; it tells me how it needs to be completed, and therefore, evolves in composition and color as it goes along.
Reflecting Light is now intended not only as a celebration of sea turtles, but also a metaphor for sharing our beauty despite vulnerability, challenging ourselves to understand diverse viewpoints, and seeking truth. Following is a view into my mind that journeyed with that metaphor:
The reason we can see this turtle is because he is swimming near the light, and the light simultaneously reveals his form, pattern, and color while reflecting these qualities out into the world. If he stayed in the dark, not only would he be invisible to us, but he would not reflect his characteristics in ripples beyond his physical presence.
In addition to sharing his characteristics, swimming towards the light allows him to see his surroundings versus ‘staying in the dark’ regarding the diversity that surrounds him both literally and figuratively. If we can’t see our surroundings, we definitely can’t understand them.
There are so many reasons that we shrink from the light/truth:
-We judge ourselves inferior. What if the turtle, thought, “Damn my shell looks fat and my spots look too blue in this light. I am staying in the dark! “
-We are afraid of failure.
-We are afraid of success.
-We fear others’ judgement and we want acceptance more than we want to express our true selves. (We live in a judgmental world. Acceptance is often linked to clothing or hairstyles, make of vehicles, religion, political affiliation, sexual orientation, or gender identification.)
- It is truly unsafe to share our unique selves. At its extreme, judgment leads to genocide, racism, sexism and similar wrongs.
-We feel uncomfortable, angry, or disrespected with different opinions, existences, or lifestyles.
-We are ignorant.
-We would rather have someone else tell us how to believe/behave than to think about it and be responsible for our own thoughts, behaviors and consequences. There are great leaders in the world, but I am a firm believer that we still need to ask ourselves if the information they are sharing rings true. What could have affected their opinion/knowledge? Doctors, preachers, professors, monks, teachers are all human after all.
-We don’t have complete control over the ripples of our light. Once we embody our authentic selves, and choose to share it with the world, we can control our communication/presentation, but we can’t control how others’ perceive it. Again, our turtle could say, “I am never going to the light again. Last time I did, that stupid water made part of my reflection look like an alien head.”
In creating ‘Reflecting Light’, I wanted to remind myself to Actively Practice the Courage of:
- Sharing my unique beauty by coming out of the “safety” of the dark. For the most part, I am safe to do so in my privileged life, and I would hate to waste that privilege.
-Exposing myself to and truly seeking to understand different viewpoints from my own. It is painfully clear to me how polarized we have become.
-Seeking truth through educating myself and exploring the validity of my sources. (I have recently started reading a lot of history and have found how very one sided my youthful history education was. I am enjoying seeing the scene from different angles. It helps me understand our current challenges better as well as why history continues to repeat itself.)
-Challenging myself to judge less. We share a powerful journey as humans. Despite our immense diversity, at our core we are all human and it hurts when people judge. I don’t like receiving it, and therefore, will try to dole it out less.
Like I say in my artist’s statement, when it comes down to it, we all share the paradox of pain and love, struggle and triumph, and the choices to give power to the darkness or the light.
Coming into the light isn’t easy. It requires us to explore and identify our authentic strengths and weaknesses, share them, face the consequences of our choices, manage others’ responses to all of the above. At the same time, coming into the light illuminates truth, our beauty, and the beautiful diversity of our surroundings. Will you join me in the courageous action of reflecting light?