For many years, I believed that creativity was something I simply didn’t possess. Despite growing up surrounded by the art of my grandmother, Janice, a professional artist whose talent and dedication were awe-inspiring, I always felt like I couldn’t measure up. Her studio, filled with vibrant paintings and intricate sketches, seemed like a world I would never be part of. I often thought that creativity was something innate, and that it had skipped over me.
But then, one day, my best friend—also named Janice—challenged my thinking. She saw something in me that I couldn’t see myself. We were having a conversation about art, and she turned to me with a smile and said, “I believe you’re creative. You just have to start creating.” Her words were simple, but they had a profound impact. Janice taught me that creativity doesn’t come from just waiting to feel inspired; it comes from trying, from daring to make mistakes and learn along the way. “You’ll never know what you’re capable of if you don’t give it a chance,” she told me. “Believing in yourself is the first step, and from there, you’ll grow.”
Her encouragement planted a seed, and I took a leap into a world I never thought was mine to enter. Over the years, my love and admiration for both Janices—my grandmother, who had shown me what it meant to live a life immersed in art, and my best friend, who believed in me when I couldn’t—became the foundation of my creative journey. Their unwavering faith in me pushed me to explore my own voice, to try, and to embrace the process of creation.
Now, years later, I look back and realize how much those two Janices have shaped my life, not just as an artist, but as a person. Their influence continues to guide my work—whether it’s through the natural, fluid style of my grandmother’s paintings or the fearless, bold spirit of my best friend’s words. Creativity, I learned, isn’t a gift you’re born with; it’s something you cultivate, something you choose to nurture. And that’s what I continue to do every day, carrying the lessons of the two Janices with me, shaping my art and my life for the better.
