How many abandoned works sit in the back of your storage? How often do you picture finishing them or reimagining them? Or do you think you might as well cover them completely and use the materials for something brand new?
Often, I dredge up a piece that is unfinished and I reminisce. I can almost reignite the feelings that consumed me when the inspiration originally struck. More often, I extinguish that feeling almost instantly and yank my mind back to present, looking at my forgotten works as failure. How inconsiderate is it of us to drop that label on something that once fed us hope? Consider that even just the idea of the piece once struck excitement and even if only temporary, it meant something. Possibly, some works aren’t meant to be finished; their purpose is fulfilled in kindling your soul and moving on. Next time you’re returning the seasonal decorations to their storage and catch a glimpse of the half-painted, outdated, antiquated work hiding behind the boxes, give it some grace. Admire it for being exactly what you needed in the moment that you started it. Lend some appreciation for all that it was and give it the opportunity to mean something still, unfinished just as it is. For aren’t we all an unfinished work just trying to find our place in this world too.