The creative one

I often say that Ben is the creative one in the family, though Heather is giving him a run for his money with her latest drawing exploits.  It turns out that Ben's artistic skills are not just confined to visual art, design, filmmaking and acting; turns out he's a writer, too.

"You need to read the story that Ben wrote at school," said Heather.

"Where is it?" I asked.

"On his computer," she replied.  "You'll need to ask him to show it to you."

He was in the middle a game when I popped into his world.  There was an obvious sense of pride when he paused his game immediately to bring up the file from Google Drive.  Normally I get groans and sneers when I ask him to stop playing a game.

He offered his chair and I sat down to read.

It was a short story set in Barcelona with great dialogue, description and action.  It was far better than anything I wrote in all my school years and a definite sign that he has yet another creative arrow in his quiver.

It makes me think that I should get him into the upcoming Arts Council Wood Buffalo workshop with Charmaine Hammond.  It is on October 22nd from 6 pm to 9 pm at The Redpoll Centre Conference Room.  Targeted for youth ages 10 to 17.  The workshop is based on interactive writing and art exercises with the eventual goal of teaching the process of writing from start to finish.

The cost is only $20 with a limit of 25 participants.  You can register by clicking here.

Ben is in Grade 7 and continues to inspire me with his dedication to the various creative things he pursues.  I helped with this short video and was blown away how he worked it all out in his mind before letting me near the camera.

A sketch of the Eiffel Tower done in the back seat of the car while on a road trip

He had this spark in his eyes when he heard that I wanted to read his story; it was the same spark I saw on that cool and windy day when he filmed Horse-Man: Returns; it is the same spark I see when he starts singing the songs from Into the Woods.  There is nothing better than seeing those sparks turn into a brilliant flame.