Inspiration, or Dream Follow-through

Contrary to what some people may think, I did not grow up with the burning desire to be a squirrel-feeder inventor. But so far, that is my claim to fame (SQUNGEE) . It has, however, been my dream to be a writer since I first pasted a noun and verb together on paper and called it a story.

So I find it inspiring to meet people who have pursued their dreams and seen them come to fruition. My sister, Vivian has self-published a children’s book (Giraffes) illustrated with quilts that she hand-stitched. I believe she is nearly ready to publish her second book.

My friend at work, Eric, recently discovered he has diabetes. He turned the despair he was feeling into a comic strip of recurring characters he created. His follow through: he has posted them on a website he created, I Bleed Syrup, to help others new to the disease. And if that’s not enough inspiration for me, he’s lost over 60 pounds in the same time it took me to lose 30!

And then there’s Wes, who followed his FIRST documentary film on Christian biker clubs Brethern with a documentary on scrapbooking, Scrapped . My wife and I had the honor of joining Wes and his wife at their house for a rough-cut screening. By the end of the movie, which hints heavily that scrapbooking isn’t just for women, I was raring to scrapbook. But in talking to Wes and seeing his dedication to his dream, I found myself inspired to do much more: finish that novel I started 5 years ago, and try my hand at a writing a screenplay.

And whereas Wes inspired me to start scrapbooking, my wife, Minda, gets the credit for inspiring my scrapbooking style. I don’t know if I’m any good at scrapping, but I like most of my completed pages (Minda says I’m good, but she thinks I’m sexy too, so…). Here’s an example:

The 2-page layout is three-dimensional, so it will never see the interior of a scrapbook. I plan to mount it on a couple of artist canvases and hang them on the wall.