It's awkward.

Mostly friends and family who knew my work history and hobbies wondered out-loud “where did this art-thing come from?”   

One artist complimented me (I think) on my grasp of values. Having spent a career in social services, I presumed he was referring to my ethics or morals, until I Googled “values - art”.

Instructional books on drawing helped me understand how real artists describe the process of making art. Sara bought us memberships in an art museum, then another. We attended exhibitions at art galleries. I volunteered to teach drawing at a senior center in order to sharpen my response time when asked “how do I draw that?”. Practice and teaching resulted in needing to gather more pencils, pens, and paper specifically for art!

I drew neighbor's houses for fun, practice because they were simple .. boxes surrounded by bushes, but more.  Within a year after first picking up a pencil and pen, I was honored to provide illustrations of Marietta's grand houses for the annual tour of historic homes.

Although still feeling awkward when talking about art - my art, it became less distressing ...  with practice.   

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