Doin’ What Comes Naturally

When the kids and I arrived home on Sunday, Laddie was making weird whimpering noises. Sarah let him out of his cage, and he bolted for the stove. He was absolutely obsessed. After about 5 minutes watching Laddie’s frantic sniffing and digging, I figured it out. We had a mouse.

I saw said mouse about three hours later while talking to The Spousal Unit about his (TSU’s) discovery of a mouse in the house. Yes, I screamed into the phone. No, I did not jump on any chairs.

Laddie has been absolutely nuts on mouse patrol. It’s clear only he (and sometimes Sydney) know what is going on. They are running on pure instinct — doing what Scottish Terriers do naturally: hunt vermin. It is both funny and interesting to watch my beloved pet turn into the small Scottish wolf with a mission.

There has been talk on the Smack blog that basically boils down to this: why don’t we do what creatively comes naturally to us. Why do some people need to follow the Scrapbook divas? Why do some people do all they can to become divas, but fail to be chosen time and again. Why scrap what some “authority” tells you to do, or in the style they deem “correct”?

I once submitted pages to a design contest — then, immediately after mailing my package, realized that it was a total waste of my time and postage money. Never did it again.

I once applied to a design team. When I saw who was chosen and their style (throw everything from a particular manufacturer on a page – a.k.a. product vomit), I realized my style was not one that would sell tons of product. It’s all about sales, not about good design or technique. I never did that again.

So, I stick to what I like. I pull together some pretty nice layouts and cards, if I say so myself. I share my work with a non-competitive and very creative bunch of paper artists when I’m in the mood — or I have time to post a photo.

But it’s all on my terms, and no one else’s. Because in the end, the one who really cares the most about what I’ve created is me. Like Laddie, I am going to keep digging, and searching, and doing what comes naturally to me.