What shows
how little
we know?
What can be is
oft far less than
what we expect.
What is now
has never been
what it was.
07/25/2024 j.g.l.
value beyond
Simplicity.
Is there emotion in austerity?
Humanity?
What do you see when attempting
to define your limited visibility?
Minimalism, abstract impressionism
or incorporeal thought.
Less is more, but is it enough?
Texture, tone, and value beyond
your current scene. If you take it to an
extreme, you will question
what it means.
What is really there?
What line do you cross?
Can simplicity be complicated, or
should it even be attempted?
07/23/2024 j.g.l.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Things will not go as planned. Intentions will be disrupted, even overlooked, in the aftermath of an unexpected reality.
Where you are headed will not be the place you end up, undoubtedly or undeniably. No matter how hard you attempt to make each gesture, brushstroke, promise, prayer, or pastime as perfect as you believe it can be, many times you will not arrive at a perceived destination. All too often your endeavors never hit the mark; at times your work may be better than expected (celebrate those moments), but everything (even your judgement) is subjective.
You are not limited to, or by, the colours in your paintbox or progression of your process.
Imagination is as limited or expansive as you want it to be. Give it time to blossom; in certain instances, you may even have to reel it in. This is all about possibilities, no matter which media, method, or style you are beholden to.
You owe your art (or life) nothing but your presence; the value comes from the practice, as rudimentary or spontaneous as it is or will become.
07/22/2024 j.g.l.
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Posted on March 13, 2017 by j.g.lewis
// 2 Comments
We interrupt this nasty weather
to remind you Spring has arrived
in the GTA.
Yes, that is a Robin taking a break
and wondering what’s going on,
or what went wrong.
This is Canada, and that’s the
kind of day it is.
Mondays are just young Fridays.
j.g.l.
Before old and wise comes young and stupid.
I wanted to be lots of things, when I was younger. I wanted to grow up, and I had dreams and plans for what I would do when I got there.
I am fortunate to have been a few of the things I wanted to be. I made a living as a photographer, and I became a father. There were other dreams, plans, or goals that never materialized, and now they don’t matter.
I also did a lot of stupid things when I was younger, but like those old dreams and plans, they are all in the past.
You should respect the past for all that it offered, but it has passed and now offers nothing. Yes, you have nostalgia, but anything worthy made the trip forward with you.
If it were meant to be, you would be it.
If you are still looking ahead, it is how you see it.
So what you wanted to be, decades and years ago, is not the thing to want now. If we continue dreaming and hoping, and planning, it is those goals will keep us going in the right direction. What you want to be now is all that matters.
There are still plenty of things I want to be, and there are more things on my bucket list than my fuck it list, so I’m still going to try to be all I can be, but above all I’m going to try to be kind.
I’ve learned plenty of lessons in the past (and made even more mistakes), but one thing I’ve learned is that kindness counts, so it is the one goal I will continue pursuing above all else.
Now that may sound more stupid than wise, but I’m going with it. I think I’ll accomplish more. I am still a dreamer.
j.g.l.
2 replies on “Mondays are just young Fridays”
j.g., Thank you for this! I took it as a beautiful reminder that we are ‘okay’, we are ‘enough’, just as we are. That even though, life happened differently than we might have planned or expected, it’s okay and we are okay. Great reminder. Thank you!
Planned or unexpected, enough is okay.
Thank you Victoria.