Thursday, January 22, 2009

Michelangelo

Here is an interesting article from Brooke Castillo, http://brookecastillo.typepad.com/. Brooke is a mind-changer, a thought-provoker, a coach and an encourager. Drop by this link for some great reads! "Michelangelo" is only one of them!
Michelangelo
"For those of you who don't know, I am homeschooling my son, Connor, this year. It is actually very good for me to retake third grade. I missed most of it the first time.Today I learned something that blew my mind: Michelangelo hated painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Hated it.If I had been his coach, I would have asked him why.He would have told me that his boss was a tyrant and that he didn't see himself as a painter-he believed he was a sculptor. He would have told me he missed his family in Florence and that the pay was inconsistent.Then, as his coach, I might have asked him why he didn't quit.I know.I am so glad I wasn't his coach.The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel is one of the most inspired and beautiful things I have ever seen. How could he have hated doing it? How could he have spent four years making something so amazing and not enjoyed it?It makes me wonder. . . What if he had followed his "North Star" and not done the thing he hated?I cringe at the thought. And then I wonder...What might he have created (and loved creating) in those four years instead?Or was the Sistine Chapel his North Star and he just didn't realize it at the time?I don't have the answers.But it does make me think about my own life, and if I have a small verison of my own Sistine Chapel that I might hate doing but I am meant to do it because of all the joy and inspiration it might give to others. Did he love it when it was done? Was it worth it to him?I know it was to me."

1 comment:

Paula Scott Molokai Girl Studio said...

What a thought provoking post! I didn't know that he hated painting the Sistine Chapel!
It does make me think more about the what ifs. I think too, that it speaks tons about commitment if anything else.