You're only as good as....

In the days leading up to live painting engagements, I start to get the butterflies in my stomach.  I have two big ones coming up this weekend in Edmonton.  On Friday, I'll be doing a live painting of Connor McDavid at the Alzheimer's Face-Off luncheon in front of over 500 people at the Shaw Conference Centre.  On Saturday, I'll be painting at the 7th Annual Hard Hat Party, a event put on by the Interior Designers of Alberta in support of FIND Edmonton, a social enterprise that provides essential furnishing to individuals and families moving out of homelessness.  My appearance is being sponsored by my friends at Solutions Business Interiors, the company that helped us so much in putting together The Redpoll Centre project.

"You still get nervous?" people ask. 

"Yes," I reply.  "Absolutely."

I have done a lot of live paintings over the years. You would think that after having done multiple dozens that they would become routine.  They don't.  Each one is completely unique and requires my total focus and all the energy I can muster.  The fact is that what happens internally before starting every new project is the sense or feeling that I'm only as good as the painting I'm working on right now. 

Each day is a new day.  Each project is a new challenge.  Despite the 824 that came before, the only one that matters in the moment is the one on the easel.