2023 August
Greetings to all of you! August is by far the hottest month in Dubai land. No more outdoor activities aside from the very early morning swims on the weekends. My Architectural career is picking up, I am juggling 5 projects and a few small ones. I surely miss painting. I am enjoying though my audiobooks on the daily commute so that is a plus. My household is full of love and laughter, I can’t ask for anything else in the world. What suffered however, is my art and the marketing promotions I am doing alongside. It’s been a month since I deactivated my Facebook and posted on Instagram. I wonder if people still remember me. I need to paint and get back on the groove. I wonder… there is always a way to balance art, family, career, right? It is all a matter of creating systems and routines. It is like the project management of my restaurant projects complete with Gantt charts and organizational blah.
I am becoming the middle-aged woman who has bills to pay and a family to tend to and all those adult responsibilities. And I feel I should be doing more art than I should and not just talking about it like what I am doing now. A prolific one. A blockbuster. It is all just in my mind. Dreams are meant to be realized but on the other hand we should be kind to ourselves too. I am doing my best; I am sure because I am far from the person I was last year. I treasure kindness and humility now more than ambition and prestige. That is what living in Dubai for 16 years taught me, I guess. I am not blinded any more by the glitz, power or money. The truly rich, when you get to know them, are the epitome of kindness and humility. They treasure customized gifts more than expensive ones because they can buy everything but custom made (ahem.. a painting) is a thoughtful one. They treasure genuine connections. They treasure those little moments of happiness in your friendship too.
I miss getting lost in painting. Being in the flow and the process just gives you so much joy and happiness. Creativity soothes all worries my babe. Get back to it.
Xoxo,
Nelly