One morning my granddaughter Zoe was getting ready for kindergarten when her mother walked into her room. \u201cDoes this go together?\u201d Zoe asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re an artist,\u201d Jennie reminded her. \u201cYou can wear whatever you want.\u201d<\/p>\n
The next morning, Zoe confidently put on her fanciest dress and her flowered rain boots. When she walked into the kitchen, her father took one look and said, \u201cLose the boots.\u201d<\/p>\n
Zoe looked him straight in the eye and said, \u201cDad, I\u2019m an artist. I can wear whatever I want.\u201d<\/p>\n
It delights me, of course, that Zoe is encouraged to think creatively and to think of herself as an artist. There’s evidence that she’s taking it quite seriously.<\/p>\n
A few months ago I was planning a visit to Zoe and her family when I got a Skype call from her. We talked about some of the things we were going to do when I got there.<\/p>\n
\u201cSaturday is Jacob\u2019s birthday,\u201d she said in her most matter-of-fact voice. (Jacob is the doll I gave Zoe for her second birthday. Jacob is a girl.)<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, dear,\u201d I said. \u201cI don\u2019t have time to get her a present.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201dImprovise,\u201d Zoe suggested. \u201cJust use what you have.\u201d<\/p>\n
Great advice, don’t you think, for solving a problem? But being an artist of the ordinary has even greater rewards.<\/p>\n
Some of the happiest people around are those who have been raised to make their life an on-going art project. And, happily, I\u2019m not alone in thinking that.<\/p>\n
I recently finished reading Peter Buffett\u2019s Life is What You Make It<\/em><\/strong>. Of course, I was curious to know what it was like to grow up with one of the world\u2019s wealthiest men as a father.\u00a0<\/p>\n My favorite story in the book answered that question nicely. Peter writes about coming home to tell his family that he\u2019s decided to follow his passion and become a musician. Here’s what happened next.<\/p>\n \u201cAs was his custom,\u201d Buffett writes, \u201cmy father listened carefully, without judging, without offering explicit advice. Then one day, almost in passing as he headed out the door, he said to me, \u2018You know, Pete, you and I really do the same thing. Music is your canvas. Berkshire\u2019s my canvas and I get to paint a little every day.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cThat was all he said\u2014and it was plenty.\u201d<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know if the Buffett men ever heard what M.C. Richards said, but they certainly personify it. \u00a0\u201cAll the arts we practice are apprenticeship,\u201d says Richards. \u201cThe big art is our life.\u201d<\/p>\n Seems to me that Zoe’s already figured that out. What’s your canvas?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One morning my granddaughter Zoe was getting ready for kindergarten when her mother walked into her room. \u201cDoes this go together?\u201d Zoe asked. \u201cYou\u2019re an artist,\u201d Jennie reminded her. \u201cYou can wear whatever you want.\u201d The next morning, Zoe confidently put on her fanciest dress and her flowered rain boots. When she walked into the…<\/p>\n