Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Learning to Love God by Loving Others

Home
Progressive Christian
When You Mess Up, Just Keep Going

When You Mess Up, Just Keep Going

Last updated on: June 1, 2021 at 11:37 am by Susan E. Brooks

When You Mess Up, Just Keep Going 2021-06-01T11:37:08-04:00 Susan E. Brooks

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I just keep going on this pastel drawing of the lily pond at Gethsemane, where Thomas Merton lived in Bardstown, Ky. Artwork in process by Susan E. Brooks.

I learned a valuable lesson from an ink splat in the middle of a portrait drawing class. After the professor’s action shocked me, he taught me to just keep going in spite of mistakes.

The Ink Splat

I’ll never forget the ink spill day in drawing class. I was attending a liberal arts university, majoring in fine art. Day after day we studied by drawing from a bust of the “David” by Michelangelo. We sketched in charcoal, pastel, pencil, ink—I produced one portrait after another. My style was careful and detailed, and I felt I could compete with the other students. They were my tribe. I fit in with these young artists, in my quiet, intense way.

One day, I had a good drawing going, and then I dropped a blob of ink right in the middle of David’s face where it was supposed to be left white. I panicked and thought all was lost. Our professor, who happened to be a double of Elton John (no kidding, he would go to parties as Elton John), strolled over to my drawing and smeared the ink splat across my paper and said, “Now fix it!”

Making the Most of Mistakes

Shocked and on the brink of tears, I piled on the white in an attempt to cover the blotch. Next, I built up layer upon layer of colored charcoal until I had a drawing that was far from perfect, but there was something unique and interesting about it. The professor said, “That’s the best you’ve ever done!” and he hung it on the wall with the work he liked. That day was a turning point for me, and I learned to experiment and keep going even if it might mean messing up an otherwise good drawing.

Though I taught high school art for years, I never had the guts to do that to any of my students. It would have seemed a bit harsh, I’m afraid, but I did tell them the story. From the ink smear, I learned not to despair over mistakes and unexpected turns in art and in life. Sometimes mistakes turn out to be serendipitous, leading to better outcomes than we might have imagined.

Just Keep Going

More recently, an artist mentor gave me some encouraging advice of a similar vein. I was working on a pastel, and it was looking good, nearly finished maybe. “Should I keep going and maybe ruin it?” I asked my mentor.

“I always keep on working. With your talent it would be almost impossible to ruin it, and if you do, you can set it aside and come back to it later,” he said.

A God of Second Chances

Romans 4:17 speaks of “the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.”

In life, as in art, keep going. You have what it takes, and if you mess up, you can work on it again later. God is a God of redemption and new life. He can take our mistakes and makes them into something good.

Any thoughts or examples of mistakes that turned into successes? I’d love to hear them in the comments!

One of my favorite authors, who is also an artist, wrote a book entitled Keep Going. If you need more motivation for creative endeavors, this book is for you!

I’m an artist who loves to write. If you’d like to get to know me better, please follow me on social media.

My Blog: susanebrooks.com

Instagram @sebrooks81 (Mostly Art)

Facebook, Susan E. Brooks, Artist,

Twitter @sebrooks81

Art

General Christian Topics

Previous Post

May 28, 2021

3 Good Ways to Be Like Little Children

Next Post

June 4, 2021 3 Things We Took for Granted Before 2020

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Art Discipleship dreams and Goals emotional health Following Jesus General Christian Topics God's Love Grace Hearing God identity in Christ Marriage prayer Raising Children Relationships and family sacrificial love Social Justice spiritual focus spiritual growth Trusting God Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz