A Gift To My Future Self

At Fire & Water, there hung on the wall a manifesto, the final line of which read, "Art is the salvation of the soul." I have always been a creative, expressive person yet have been reluctant to call myself an artist. But, if art is "the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance," and is created by individuals of unusual sensitivity, perceptivity, and communicativeness, then I am, indeed, an artist.

Lately, I've been noticing the role of art in my life more intimately, seeing how the art that I create- the written works, the photographs, the drawings- are like missives I am sending out to the potential future me, to arm myself with the tools I will need to face the challenges life will, no doubt, offer up. I recently wrote a poem which I believed was an offering to a friend who has had a particularly tough year. The very next day, I needed those words of wisdom more than anyone else I know, for I suddenly found myself in emotional dire straights.

Not only does my own art work this way, but the art of others does as well. I remember being with Jesse at Boston Children's Hospital, feeling so weary, so shattered and disoriented, and hearing Star's songs, penned many years previous, with new ears, as though he had just written them. The words seemed to touch on every moment we were living with Jesse, as though visionary Star had sent them ahead of himself so that we would have a way of touching down in the experience and gleaning deeper meaning from it through the songs. The songs encouraged me to slow down and savor every moment with confidence, as if I was following a map that had been sent well in advance of me ever knowing I'd be taking a journey.

And, art is like this. It's the gift we send out across time, in all directions, believing that some day it will help someone, and sometimes (probably most often) that someone is the artist him- or herself. Art has delivered the immaterial part of my being from harm, from ruin, and has brought me joy, communion, and the courage to withstand, and the wisdom to celebrate, the greatest challenges of life. I find it poetic and beautiful that I pinned that manifesto to the wall, as a gift to the world, so many years ago, and it is only now that the full strength of its message has reached me- yet another gift to my future self.