When life hits you with a brick, it makes you step back from the rat race for a moment and think!
Sometimes we are so busy -- rushing to jobs, carpooling kids, grabbing fast food, coming home exhausted -- we forget to enjoy life. Then something happens that changes everything. Well, something happened to me, and along the way, thankfully, I discovered silk art.
Two years ago, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Shock and disbelief can barely express some of the emotions I went through. With those emotions, I cried this common refrain: “Not me, I don’t have any breast cancer in my family.” (Did you know 80% of all breast cancer patients do not have a family history of breast cancer?)
Even having gone through this ordeal, I still count myself lucky on many levels. On a physical level, the cancer I had was slow-growing. I had a mastectomy which cleaned out all the cancer. I also did not have to undergo chemotherapy or radiation. On an emotional level, the entire cancer experience made me slow down and reevaluate my life.
Although my vocation was as a left-brained ophthalmic technician, my avocation had always been crafting and art. I loved working with fabric, specifically fabric-painting on T-shirts and baby clothes. But hobby time was limited; I always came home exhausted and had a million things to look after: husband, kids, groceries and yes, the housework. Any energy left after all that, I would pull out the art supplies and play. I was no martyr, just a normal working wife and mother in today’s demanding world.
Cancer makes you stop. It stopped me.
While I was recovering from the multiple surgeries related to the mastectomy and the reconstruction, I attended support groups and art therapy groups. Part of the time I was in Denver and went to a center called Qualife ; then, in Atlanta, I attended The Wellness Community. At Qualife, I was introduced to silk painting. It was love at first brush! As I healed both mentally and physically, the beauty of silk art -- the flow of the dye, the feel of the silk -- touches your soul in a way that is hard to express.
Art therapy serves a variety of people, not only cancer patients. Art helps us find what is in our soul and guides us in its expression. Art helps us to heal and to move forward. Some people in art therapy classes are artists looking to explore their feelings further. Others have not picked up a crayon since grade school; but art therapy enables them to articulate their pain and emotions through a guided outlet. Most of these classes are facilitated by trained art therapists with degrees in psychology. The conclusion: silk art can be a powerful healing force.
I am now passing on my knowledge of silk painting at The Wellness Community in Atlanta. It has come full circle for me. It may be a cliché to you but never again for me: Take the time and smell the roses. Maybe even take the time to paint them while you’re at it. With the loving support of my husband, I quit my old job and am now pursuing a career in art full-time. Silk painting is where my passion lies. And I am happily following that dream. Please don’t wait till life hits you in the head with a brick to follow your bliss.
Martha Andreatos
Sometimes we are so busy -- rushing to jobs, carpooling kids, grabbing fast food, coming home exhausted -- we forget to enjoy life. Then something happens that changes everything. Well, something happened to me, and along the way, thankfully, I discovered silk art.
Two years ago, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Shock and disbelief can barely express some of the emotions I went through. With those emotions, I cried this common refrain: “Not me, I don’t have any breast cancer in my family.” (Did you know 80% of all breast cancer patients do not have a family history of breast cancer?)
Even having gone through this ordeal, I still count myself lucky on many levels. On a physical level, the cancer I had was slow-growing. I had a mastectomy which cleaned out all the cancer. I also did not have to undergo chemotherapy or radiation. On an emotional level, the entire cancer experience made me slow down and reevaluate my life.
Although my vocation was as a left-brained ophthalmic technician, my avocation had always been crafting and art. I loved working with fabric, specifically fabric-painting on T-shirts and baby clothes. But hobby time was limited; I always came home exhausted and had a million things to look after: husband, kids, groceries and yes, the housework. Any energy left after all that, I would pull out the art supplies and play. I was no martyr, just a normal working wife and mother in today’s demanding world.
Cancer makes you stop. It stopped me.
While I was recovering from the multiple surgeries related to the mastectomy and the reconstruction, I attended support groups and art therapy groups. Part of the time I was in Denver and went to a center called Qualife ; then, in Atlanta, I attended The Wellness Community. At Qualife, I was introduced to silk painting. It was love at first brush! As I healed both mentally and physically, the beauty of silk art -- the flow of the dye, the feel of the silk -- touches your soul in a way that is hard to express.
Art therapy serves a variety of people, not only cancer patients. Art helps us find what is in our soul and guides us in its expression. Art helps us to heal and to move forward. Some people in art therapy classes are artists looking to explore their feelings further. Others have not picked up a crayon since grade school; but art therapy enables them to articulate their pain and emotions through a guided outlet. Most of these classes are facilitated by trained art therapists with degrees in psychology. The conclusion: silk art can be a powerful healing force.
I am now passing on my knowledge of silk painting at The Wellness Community in Atlanta. It has come full circle for me. It may be a cliché to you but never again for me: Take the time and smell the roses. Maybe even take the time to paint them while you’re at it. With the loving support of my husband, I quit my old job and am now pursuing a career in art full-time. Silk painting is where my passion lies. And I am happily following that dream. Please don’t wait till life hits you in the head with a brick to follow your bliss.
Martha Andreatos
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