To The Struggling Artist

Dear Struggling Artist,

I’m not here to tell you it gets better. I’m here to tell you to enjoy the journey.

When I was thirteen I left public school to homeschool. That’s when I fell in love with making music. When I was seventeen I got signed by a record deal. I made it, right? When I was twenty I dropped my first large-scale music video. Is anyone listening? Each step lined with fears and doubts, and an ever-present craving for the next one. I never looked down to see the gold etched cobble stone, or my favorite pair of shoes. I was tripping, falling, crawling to get to the next step. If I could just make it there I’d be happy right?

Art either falls in the land of the over-appreciated or the under-appreciated. But the making of art is the in-between. The staying up late after your 9–5 to finish your latest piece. The saving of pennies for your next big project. The constant cups of coffee. The disapproving looks you receive when meeting strangers. The family interventions. The world you escape to. The excitment. The dreaming. The living. Making art is the now.

If you can’t enjoy it now, I promise you won’t enjoy it once you enter into what your idea of success is. Cherish your gift. Thank the One who gave it to you.

Kind Regards,

A Fellow Struggling Artist