This week’s summer showcase post is by  Abby Esparza, an art teacher who lives near Houston, TX.  I’m excited to share it with you first because Revelry Painting Parties sound like a great way to spend an afternoon, but perhaps more importantly, because her story illustrates how when you open yourself up to trying new things, you also hold the door open for the people around you to do the same.  

As an adult, it’s funny for me to remember how the years between being a freshman and graduating from high school seemed eternal.  In those four years I was “forced” to learn about all sorts of things from physical science to history to geometry.  I didn’t appreciate my free education at the time–in fact I sometimes complained about it.  I even took the classes I wasn’t forced to take for granted: cooking, photography, and, my favorite, art.

If you are anything like me, time has sped up a lot since high school and all of a sudden you look around to find yourself smack dab in the middle of adulthood.  As a result of this whirlwind of life, we lose track of those things we loved to do in our youth. For many art is one of the elements of our “past life” that it is hard to get back into as an adult. Continue reading →