Art is everywhere, if you choose to look.
Lately, as the weather becomes a slightly more pleasurable each day, I am taking the opportunity to get back out on the streets of Toronto to observe what really happens here.
Last Thursday, on the way to an appointment, I was fortunate to notice something I had never seen before.
Just about any day you’ll find Ross Ward hunched over on Yonge Street tending to his art. The ‘Birdman of Toronto’ has been a fixture on these streets in various locations for well over a decade, and during each day he crafts, and sells, palm-sized birds.
Once only a hobby — this is now more than whittling — Ward carves out shapes of common birds from reclaimed wood. There is always a piece in progress, and always a small flock for sale on his concrete workspace.
Perhaps in our day-to-day journeys, we don’t look close enough at all the people. We don’t often observe enough to see art just happening here and there on our landscape. I’ve wandered this street how many times and only last week did I notice the man. I saw him again on the weekend.
Appreciating the beauty of his work, I bought a bird as a gift for someone . . . or maybe a souvenir for myself to one day remember my time in this city.
Couldn’t we all use more memorable hand-made art?
What We Need To Do
Visions, goals, tasks, assignments: each of us is working on something, creative or otherwise. The pursuit of a passion takes many forms, and it is not always easy. In fact, it can be damn hard. Still, we keep trying. We push as hard as we can, in the time allowed (or whenever we can find a moment), to further our efforts. We celebrate, as often as we can, the small steps. Then we strive for more. The end result is not always clear, or it may seem impossible, but something inside of us keep pushing forward. We keep doing what we need to be doing. We know what we need to do.
11/25/2018 j.g.l.