By Amy Charlette ©
Artist
“Pray to catch the bus, then run as fast as you can.” - Julia Cameron, The Artist's Way
This pretty well sums up how I came back to art and back to MYSELF… and I am still running.
I was always a creative child (we all are) carrying an art journal and pencils wherever I went, but the pressures of the schooling system proved too much and my love for art was sucked from the paintbrush.
Life never seemed to flow from that point. I always seemed to struggle with jobs, with relationships and with countless other things.
In 2018, a solid decade into my adult life, it came to a breaking point. I hit yet another wall to the face and fork in the road and decided to take a leap of faith. Quitting my corporate gig I embarked on a solo trip around Asia. I could finally ‘find myself’, I thought, as I packed my passport and put my things into storage. But of course life had other plans…
"I hadn’t spoken to God properly in years, but that day, the conversation flowed".
Around a month into my trip I fell sick. Really sick and wound up in an intensive care ward in a small public hospital in the middle of nowhere. I had no way to call home and couldn’t sit up let alone catch a taxi out of there. Four days in and barely able to breathe, I admitted defeat. I hadn’t spoken to God properly in years, but that day, the conversation flowed. I handed it all over and surrendered to my path.
Of course, as these stories tend to go, not long after that the only English speaking man in the hospital (who happened to be visiting his grandmother that day) walked over - he had worked with Westerners before and took compassion on me. Thankfully he loaned me his phone and finally I could call for help.
Another 9 hours and loads of blood tests later, I was transferred to another hospital and then taken by ambulance to Bangkok where I spent 2 weeks recovering in intensive care. Perhaps a prayer had been answered?
My whole direction of life changed from here… I decided to cut my trip short and move in temporarily with my mum in the small home town I grew up in to recover. This wasn’t the plan I had envisioned (in fact it was perhaps my worst nightmare) but it was certainly part of the ‘bigger plan’. It was here where I picked up the paintbrush again…
To cut a long story short… I spent five months at home and it was exactly where I needed to be. I had learnt the life changing magic of surrender and decided to just ‘go with it’. It was the first time in my life that I had no job, no belongings, no direction and no partner. On ‘paper’ (according to Western culture) I had nothing and I decided just to ride the wave.
Not long after that I started sharing my art on social media and was blown away by the response. I had taken a leap of faith 6 months earlier, and even though I couldn’t see it at the time, I found exactly what I was looking for.
"I am floating with the tides rather than paddling against them".
Nowadays I feel a little more like I am floating with the tides rather than paddling against them (although nothing is ever perfect) and I have my art practice to thank for that.
My hope is that, through my art, I can encourage others to tap back into their creativity and find more flow in their life. ……………………………………… For me, art is about creating energy on canvas and a way to channel the universe. My ‘WHY’ largely outweighs my ‘WHAT’. So my art is closely tied to my spiritual side and heavily influenced by yoga, nature, metaphysics and sacred geometry.
My intention is to create art to inspire deeper connection to self, creativity, community, nature and the universe and as a vehicle for positive change.
Written and Artwork by Amy Charlette ©
For more information on Amy's work please head over to the links below:
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