Blue Happy Living

About 4 years ago I needed a student to fill a spot in a on-site drawing competition.  I was desperate because we were at the beginning of building our upper school art program.  I went through all my students and most were already in the contest or they couldn’t come.  So I reached outside of my classes and found someone.  He was such a well-mannered young man and so shy.  He hardly even looked up me when I talked with him.  Skill and talent wasn’t important at this point I just needed a student in the 8th grade willing to show up and compete.

The morning of the contest we all met and I advised the kids on what they needed to do, where to go and at what time.  I ask the ultimate teacher question “does anyone have any questions” and no one said anything.  So off I sent them to represent Wylie Prep in on-site drawing. When the results came in I wasn’t surprised that we placed in every grade and almost swept the contest.  What did surprise me was Alan the young man who was just there to fill a spot won first place.

I was mesmerized by his talent it was clearly God-given and what a blessing to watch it wake up.  Alan has been my student now for over 4 years.  He has been such a blessing to teach and watch his abilities grow over these years. Some where along this road his family has become such a gift to me.  His mom I would say is one of my dearest friends.  She willingly let Alan explore this talent and never questioned all the hours of work needed to grow his abilities.  When you are a teacher you can only hope to see this happen with a child.  It is amazing to see a child discover new things as they learn but to watch a child discover a gift is beyond amazing. It is truly a once in a life time blessing for a teacher.

In May Alan will graduate from Wylie Prep.  Although gifted in art Alan is gifted in academics as well. He will go on to college to study Mathematics.  In a perfect world he would become a great artist and rule the art world.  Well in my perfect little world that is what would happen.  Alan may not go to art school but he will always be an artist, not just an artist but a gifted and blessed artist.  Now this is the hard part to blog about. I’m going to miss him so much.  We have over the years become friends through this art thing.  We have sat and painted and had long conversations about life, friends, family and what his future holds.  He is brilliant and smart.  Although he is all of these things he really has no idea the impact he has had on me as a teacher.  Nor does he have any idea the impact he has had on the other students that watch him work so hard.  Alan will be greatly missed and will leave a hole in the art department that will never be filled.

Sometimes we are so busy we don’t give people a chance.  We miss their talents and gifts because we don’t take the time to stop and ask questions or share a moment with them.  I’m so glad my life intersected with this young man . My teaching methods and skills have been sharpened by his willingness to learn and try new things.  I hope that you enjoy a few of his pieces as I have enjoyed watching him create these over the years.  Good Luck Alan go out into the world and amaze people in a Blue Happy way.