When I was a footling girl, I cry upwards my dad spent much of his fourth dimension at domicile inwards his office, which nosotros all called his den. My manlike mortal bring upwards was creative, in addition to he had many artistic in addition to creative pursuits. He liked to write, he wrote to a greater extent than or less curt stories, he had a beloved for languages in addition to I cry upwards him teaching himself French. He loved all types of music, playing guitar, singing inwards the Ukrainian Millennium Choir, in addition to he liked to depict in addition to watercolor pigment in addition to of course of teaching fix things inwards his workshop.
In his den were bookshelves filled amongst books near fine art in addition to writing, ancient Arab Republic of Egypt in addition to the 1 majority that would ever grab my oculus because it had a vivid ruby dust jacket - his erstwhile dictionary. I used to hang out amongst my dad inwards his den all the time. I don't intend a solar daytime went past times from kindergarten to college that I didn't take in my dad's den, plopping myself downwards inwards the large cushy chair adjacent to his desk, or inwards the small-scale sofa behind where he sat, only hanging out in addition to talking near this in addition to that. But it never was small-scale talk.
He would ever last working on to a greater extent than or less type of project, in addition to our conversations would ofttimes get-go amongst him telling me to a greater extent than or less random but interesting fact near something inwards history, or something near a famous artist, or how a certainly hue of a certainly color got its name. There was therefore much within of those 4 small-scale walls, it was similar he was therefore many lives inwards one. That's how I intend of people who practise a lot, people who bring dandy varied interests in addition to a dandy bespeak for learning things. Those kinds of people are really living their lives, in addition to it's almost every bit if they are plumbing fixtures the interests of many dissimilar lives into their 1 unmarried bridge of fourth dimension hither on earth.
I don't know how to a greater extent than or less people could non bring whatsoever interests. That's what makes life, well, interesting. But perhaps it was only the means I was brought up. Dad's life mode of learning, in addition to his beloved for the humanities certainly rubbed off on me. I intend tomorrow volition last sixteen years that he is gone. Time certainly flies. After my manlike mortal bring upwards died, my mom cleaned out to a greater extent than or less of the things inwards dad's den in addition to had to a greater extent than or less stacks of books laid aside for me to hold back through to meet if I wanted any. She had picked out his fine art books for me in addition to asked if I wanted anything else. I took the lexicon amongst the ruby dust jacket. I cry upwards how he used to tell to me, "Laura accomplish over in addition to manus me my red dictionary," in addition to right away looking back, it seems similar nosotros pulled it out of that bookcase 100 times to hold back upwards this or that. I treasure it.
But what job is a lexicon now? In this historic catamenia of the Internet nosotros literally bring everything at our fingertips, in addition to checking the spelling of a give-and-take is entirely a few keystrokes away. So when the solar daytime came that I wanted to endeavour out creating to a greater extent than or less majority page art, I knew that within the pages of my father's lexicon would last the perfect house to create in addition to hap my art. I tin sketch in addition to depict on the pages in addition to therefore 1 day, I tin locomote past times it downwards to my ain daughters. Maybe 1 solar daytime they volition add together their ain grade to it too, in addition to therefore locomote past times it downwards to their ain boy or daughter.
There is a certainly magic inwards my ruby dictionary. Filled amongst words near everything that fills our world, it lived for years surrounded amongst books near all the things I love, in addition to all the things that stir my passion to create.
And swirled within the infinite of those 4 walls, where stories were written, music played, in addition to languages discovered, it right away offers itself to me every bit a canvass - but non a blank one, bare in addition to untouched, but a lush in addition to joyful, spirited palette that amongst it's polish pages offering me the memories of each lesson taught in addition to even told past times my father. And when I polish downwards a page amongst my manus in addition to impact my pen to the page's surface, through me flows the confidence in addition to joy to create, in addition to within that, I am absolute.
Love, Laura
article in addition to images ©Laura Beth Love 2017 all rights reserved
