TM
magazine
Liv Says...
Don’t Quit
by Olivia, 3rd grade
Sometimes when you're doing something and you're working really hard
but it just crumbles and falls down--you might feel totally stressed. You
might think that what you made was so special, so hard, that you can’t
make it again. But really…you can. Everyone creating gets frustrated. It
doesn't matter who you are or what you are actually creating. As great
as I feel when I am creating something brand new,
I still get frustrated.
Something what helps me when I’m frustrated is that I think for a
second,” why am I frustrated or on the verge of quitting?” I think then
I answer, “I’m feeling frustrated because I feel I can’t make something
or can’t do something or tried to do something but it just didn’t go
the way I planned it.” The reason this sometimes helps is because you
acknowledge your feelings and relieve some of your frustration. When
you realize your feelings of frustration or whatever you might be feeling,
it’s much easier to calm yourself down. You begin to understand yourself
and ways to speak nicely and calmly to yourself.
A good example of this is if in your mind, you have
an image of something you want to paint, you start to
paint and it’s not coming out like the image you had
in your mind. You’re so upset and frustrated that you want to take
a knife to it and rip up your canvas and throw the whole thing away….
But if you stop yourself, calm yourself and see what you have created,
perhaps that ‘mistake’ or that ‘wrong’ color or ‘wrong’ line can be made
into something even more beautiful then that image you had in your
mind.
Another example: If you play tennis and you keep missing the balls,
you start to feel more like you can’t miss the ball again. Then you miss
again and all you want to do is scream or shout or just run off the court.
But I advise you not to, because that mistake is one of those things that
you think of as a bad thing, but later on you honor that mistake and you
might not notice right away that mistake shapes who you are. Mistakes
truly help you if you are open to learning and growing.
When I first started Aerial Silks, I couldn’t do ANYTHING. I was frustrated
and got more frustrated watching all the other kids do stuff I couldn’t.
But I had to talk calmly to myself and remind myself that I just started doing this. I had a passion to learn Aerial Silks. I kept at and worked to get
better. And if I fell off the silks I would get up again. I didn’t worry about
how anyone else was doing; I just kept working and speaking nicely to
myself. And yes, I did improve and continue to improve.
"If you really do quit then you don't know what
might have happened. You mess up the path
you were supposed to take."
XOXO Liv
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Illustrations by Kajiah Jacobs, who is also illustrating the "LOL" book series
Elizabeth Gorcey is a writer, actor, director, producer, and painter with a passion for documentary narrative and multi-media projects. Her latest
creation, the children’s book series, "Liv on Life," is told from the point of view of her daughter, Olivia. website: www.livonlife.com
Olivia aka “Liv." Liv is not only the inspiration for the "LOL" series but she works alongside her mother on every aspect of the series. Her "Livism”- or words of wisdom, have inspired many. When not at school you will find Olivia playing the piano, composing, reading or playing with her
doggie.
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