The Web of Life

When I think about my creativity and where it originated, I can see a long list of family members who have exhibited artistic ability. My brother was a professional musician for a long time. Sharon, my wife of 53 years, had a beautiful voice and sang in many choirs (including at one point the New Jersey State Choir). Her brothers all could sing and play instruments, and one of them, Jimmy, was also a musician. My son is a musician and a good cook. My daughter knitted the sweater (my Christmas present for this year) which you see in the picture for this newsletter. She is also a writer with a weekly blog post. Her wife, Stephanie, is amazingly creative with computers and before her stroke did some interesting and beautiful construction work.

It’s obvious in my case, at least, that creativity doesn’t jump de novo out of my soul. I have grown up in it. It’s where I’ve gotten the courage to try things that might seem different. After all, everyone around me was doing this.

I’m sure most of us have a strain of creativity in our family and friends. We all sit on the web of life.