As a young child I was
always adventuresome and creative. I loved exploring,
catching polly-wogs, building forts in the woods, and
making things. I remember surprising my skeptical
grandfather when I caught a fish with a pole that I
made from a tree branch, a spool of heavy thread, and
a safety pin. He was so proud of my successful
invention that he hung it up on the porch like a
trophy and would boast to friends and neighbors about
it. Since my grandfather was a rather stern, gruff,
man, I was happy to see him smile as he talked about
me, my pole, and my fish.
Growing
up, I liked to color. I filled coloring books
quickly, sharpening my skills as I went. My mother
taught me how to use crayons and later, colored
pencils. She showed me how to 'shade' and 'keep
within the lines.' As I learned my coloring lessons,
I gained confidence in my work and praise from my
parents. I remember coloring with my
step-grandfather, Grandpa Severy. He was a kind,
gentle man and easy to recruit as a coloring partner.
I would sit by his side, pull out my coloring book,
and we'd color together. As much as I enjoyed
coloring with him, I was saddened when I saw that he
didn't stay within the lines. I felt sorry for him in
this respect, concluding that he didn't know how to
color. I never turned down an opportunity to color
with him, however, because he was so kind and loving.
It really didn't matter to me that he didn't color
well.
Going
to school opened up a whole new world for me. In
kindergarten I was introduced to drawing, tempera
paints, and finger painting. I loved it all and did
so well that my kindergarten teacher told my parents,
'Your daughter is going to be an artist.' My parents
were not surprised by my teacher's assessment. If
anything, they agreed.
Throughout
grade school I continued to blossom as an artist. I
ate up every opportunity to express myself
creatively. I was always drawing, coloring, and
making up art projects. I loved art class, but was
not challenged by them. As I advanced through school,
I began to incorporate my talents in school
assignments. My teachers liked to assign booklets, so
I began to add illustrations to my science, health,
geography, and history notebooks. My illustrations,
along with my penmanship, impressed my teachers and
awarded me with extra good grades. This winning
combination followed me throughout my school years,
and my booklets became conversation pieces at every
grade level. To this day, I have all my booklets,
beginning with my Bird Book from fourth grade.
As
I gained confidence with my artistic ability, I
branched out into other projects, one of which was
our school newsletter, The
Student Prints. This
publication was an annual compilation of poems and
prose by grade school students. Allowing for my art
talent, I was often chosen to design and execute the
cover. This is when I learned how to silk screen and
do mimeograph art. Suffice to say, it was a challenge
to learn these new media, but I loved it. I was
fastidious in this work, and, as it turned out, The
Student Prints won several
awards.
Apart
from school, I entered poster contests. most of which
I won. My first winning entry was for a campaign to
beautify our town. I won a $25. savings bond for my
poster, "Keep Morristown Clean." My biggest
triumph came in eighth grade when I won a national
coloring contest offered by Fred Fear Easter Egg
Coloring Company. I was awarded a shiny new (blue)
Schwinn bicycle that had three gears, a headlight,
hand brakes, bell, horn, and side-saddle baskets. My
parents were so proud of me that I thought they'd
pop. Winning this prize put an end dad's
long-reluctance toward my having a bike. Suffice to
say, my new bicycle was the talk of the neighborhood.
I took good care of it as one would a special friend,
doing errands for my mom, touring around town, and
taking long trips on country back roads. My trusty,
blue Schwinn lasted me well into my adult life at
which time I gave it to a young girl who needed a
bike.
