Concrete Jungle - Art Journal Page

I grew up on a farm. And not the kind of farm where we have corn and soybeans. Those were surrounding us, but we didn't farm crops. On our farm, we had pigs. Yup, you read that right.... I grew up on a hog farm. There are tons of photos of me and my little sister as children out on the farm with the hogs. 

I miss it. I feel like it taught me a lot. I had responsibilities kids my age who lived in a city probably didn't have. I don't mind hard work, and believe that to get what you want in life you need to work hard. You make the choice to succeed. You decide how hard you want to work to get all you want. 

I come from a hard working family. I'm proud of this. Nothing came easy. Growing up was hard at times, for various reasons, but with the work ethic our parents had, we survived. Do I miss going through some of what we went through? Hell no! I wouldn't want to do it again. 

Eventually things got to be too much, and the hogs had to go. It's expensive to have a farm, even if it's just a hog farm. And hogs weren't worth what they used to be. So it was the ending of an era. I miss that the most. I miss seeing my dad working with the animals he cherished and loved. They weren't just a meal, or money... they were life to him. But he had to let it go. 

After I graduated High School and left home, I changed my mind about the country... I wanted to live in the city. I needed to be less than an hour from the nearest Wal-Mart. I wanted to be able to go somewhere and get a fancy coffee without driving over an hour. Grocery stores had to be closer than 5 miles to your home somewhere.... and so I ended up in St. Louis. This is where I am today. 

I love where I am. Wal-Mart? Well, it's just down the road, less than 5 minutes away. I can walk to the grocery store in less than 10 minutes. And fancy coffee? Well guess what? I have a Starbucks blocks away, and less than 20 minutes away is a place that sells Kaldi's coffee. Dunkin Donuts is probably 10-12 minutes from my home. So I got what I wanted. 

Right here, right now... the city's my home. 

Art Journal page using The Crafters Workshop stencil, Distress Paint in Black Soot, Dylusions Mists, a white ink pad , Dylusions stamps and a black ink pen. 

I love where I am... but it doesn't mean I've forgotten where I came from. Never forget your roots. It is a part of who you are. Love yourself for your past, and your present. 

See you soon.