Failure


13

 Failure.




One of the most difficult things in life is to learn to accept failure. It is almost understandable that nobody ever likes to feel that they have failed. Such a feeling often leads to negative thinking and false assumptions that we just cannot do some things that we are doomed to further failure.

So it is also when things do not go exactly as we had expected or hoped. We are faced with a feeling of misfortune. Something we most certainly did not expect has filled us with a sense of sadness.

A painting for which we had such high hopes has not gone to plan, we feel a deep sense of having failed. We can persevere and possibly make matters worse, or we can paint it over with a neutral colour and begin again with confidence, having learned from the failure.

This feeling of having failed or the deep sense of sadness that comes with misfortune are learned matters. Watch a child who tries to step out confidently only to trip and fall. Does the child allow this failure to stop it getting up and making a further attempt? Again, and again the child may stumble and fall but again and again, it will try again until the smile of success crosses its face.

Like the child, we must accept that not everything we do will turn out to be a success. Misfortune and failure are part of the human condition, they come our way because we are alive.
 A famous Chinese proverb says, "When the roof is leaking, there will be continuous nights of rain."

Lao Tzu tells us to learn to accept these things with a sense of humility, in so doing we will become even better artists and others will look to us for inspiration.

Love the world and even more importantly learn to love yourself in spite of the failures. In this way, we will grow to love all things and move forward step by step to the next artwork that sings to the world.

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