During a recent trip to Oregon, I visited an artist friend who has two children. Her youngest is a girl about 6 years old. And all around my friends house were pieces of art made by her daughter. When I first met this tiny artist I said to her: “Your mom has been showing me some of your art and it’s really incredible.” And she looked me straight in the eye, not missing a beat and simply said “ I know.” Which completely floored me in the best kind of way. There was no hesitation when she spoke those words. No apologies. No embarrassment or deflection. She didn’t say “ Oh, those things? They’re really not very good.” Or “How sweet of you to say that! You’re just being SO nice!” Or “ They’re OK. But you should see my friend Susie’s work. Now she’s a REAL artist!” She was simply present and deeply confident in herself as a creator. She knew her value and her worth as an artist. She didn’t need to prove that to anyone. She didn’t even need to prove it to herself. And her response made my heart leap with joy. This is what a […]