tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post4389184241771271316..comments2023-12-09T00:33:24.572-08:00Comments on Novel Matters: Art is the Gift--a She Reads Guest Post by Ariel AllisonBonnie Grovehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11377519561074174038noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-32678753544797866132012-07-22T20:19:25.369-07:002012-07-22T20:19:25.369-07:00Yes, today was precisely the day I needed to read ...Yes, today was precisely the day I needed to read that (Leaf) and this (your post and encouragement).Cherry Odelberghttp://einefeistyberg.wordpess.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-9744310990956224522012-07-21T11:17:45.396-07:002012-07-21T11:17:45.396-07:00I read Leaf by Niggle many years ago, possibly eve...I read Leaf by Niggle many years ago, possibly even decades ago. But I still hear its echoes in my soul. What they seem to be saying is to delight myself in the creative gift (the work) God has inspired in me, and stop worrying about what I think I ought to be doing, or what someone else thinks I ought to be doing, or where it fits in the grand scheme of things, or whether the work is big enough or ambitious enough, or I'm working fast enough, but rather... does it absorb me, challenge me, and bring me joy? Does it compel me to give it my all in the telling? Am I being faithful to what I'm called to do, even if it's to paint a few leaves? No matter how small the work seems it is part of a larger whole, and one day we'll get to see that wholeness.Lori Bentonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04714197239425827339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-70647599342958743732012-07-20T13:13:27.564-07:002012-07-20T13:13:27.564-07:00Congratulations, Ariel! I love this so much-- &quo...Congratulations, Ariel! I love this so much-- "the act of creating this novel was the gift." Lovely.Samantha Bennetthttp://triplethreaded.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-35453398741295901922012-07-20T12:58:25.735-07:002012-07-20T12:58:25.735-07:00Thank you, my friends, for all your kind words. I ...Thank you, my friends, for all your kind words. I recently discovered "Leaf: by Niggle" and for such a short story it has had a big impact on my life. I wish I could assign it as reading to everyone I know and then sit down and discuss it with them. It makes me cry every time I read it.<br /><br />Please read Niggle and then come back and discuss it with me. There's so much more in the story than I could talk about here. And the ending! Well, go read and you'll see.<br /><br />As always I'm so glad that my friends at Novel Matters have given me a bit of space to share my words. I'm grateful for you.Ariel Lawhonhttp://www.shereads.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-8356795065120823012012-07-20T10:24:25.811-07:002012-07-20T10:24:25.811-07:00Ariel, awesome. Patti expressed perfectly my take-...Ariel, awesome. Patti expressed perfectly my take-away from your post. What we do with our gifts must be as much or more about the journey than the destination. And your post was an excellent reminder of that. I can't wait to read Leaf by Niggle.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-35323320713245513332012-07-20T09:33:59.202-07:002012-07-20T09:33:59.202-07:00There are many gifts in this post, Ariel, which so...There are many gifts in this post, Ariel, which so clearly reveals your heart. My take-away: Don't disdain the leaves I paint, write, dream. They are a gift, even though they are small and only part of the whole. Thanks for that.<br /><br />And congratulations on completing your novel, the process and the art.Patti Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01210807015376289703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-37845760184765942192012-07-20T07:17:32.627-07:002012-07-20T07:17:32.627-07:00Well done, Ariel. May this manuscript be both the ...Well done, Ariel. May this manuscript be both the leaf and the tree for you with its fullness yet unknown.Nicolehttp://hopeofglory.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-25579995482290267122012-07-20T06:13:09.024-07:002012-07-20T06:13:09.024-07:00Yes. My dream was always about the publishing. The...Yes. My dream was always about the publishing. Then it happened. I realized that the real dream was the life that happened around the publishing. The publishing is a pretty bright spot in the dream, though...but not the only one.Susie Finkbeinerhttp://www.susiefinkbeiner.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-80385894200872896182012-07-20T03:51:06.161-07:002012-07-20T03:51:06.161-07:00...and I was so busy feeling all profound that I c......and I was so busy feeling all profound that I completely forgot to say CONGRATULATIONS! on finishing your book. Well done!Megan Sayerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15410068162701570057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-31507622596722505772012-07-20T03:10:40.252-07:002012-07-20T03:10:40.252-07:00Wow. Just wow. I needed this right now and for so ...Wow. Just wow. I needed this right now and for so many reasons. <br /><br />Laying my face on the table, truly...<br /><br />(I'll do my homework tonight; promise.)V. Gingerichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01615988080091167938noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6360410252358941163.post-28415694238099834832012-07-20T02:58:36.656-07:002012-07-20T02:58:36.656-07:00Ariel that is so profound I'm almost speechles...Ariel that is so profound I'm almost speechless. Thank you so much for sharing that. <br /><br />I understand that feeling you describe. I didn't ever think that finishing a book I'd been working on for so long could feel so...uneventful. Your words sum it up exactly. I'd dreamed of a tree all this time, and was left unsure whether I'd painted a tree, or a leaf. It took a while for me to realise that, either way, it didn't matter. What matters was that I'd done my best. <br /><br />Thank you.Megan Sayerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15410068162701570057noreply@blogger.com