- Scout Sonnenberg
Art, for me, is... Art for me is...
Art, for me, is... Art for me is...
Commas. They change everything. And blind people HATE then. We hate ALL punctuation. It’s tiny & terrible. We can’t see it. Thank God my mom is a high school English teacher or I would have given up on punctuation a decade ago. But I will finish those sentences~
•Art, for me, is soothing & soulful & woven into my very being.
•Art for me is more meaningful than anything because people I love are expressing their love for me using the language I speak most fluently.
I use art 1st & foremost as a way to express my affection for my people. Creating is holy & like I have said before, it is when I am closest to my Creator.
I am not an art critic. I am a lover of art. I am most interested in the heart of the artist.
So when someone presents me w a piece crafted by their own hands in their own style & in their own way... those are my truest treasures.
Let me show you what I mean: (notice the colon? I am not happy about it but I used it to precede a list.)
Silas~ the best big brother that ever brothered. Protector. Professional pesterer. Cuddler. Cutie. Supportive. Encouraging. Brave. All the things I aspire to be. He is a digital guy. He took my digital drawing & made my business logo for “Out of Focus.” I love him. He loves me.
Coleman~ he works hard & makes amazing things w his hands. He is creative & a craftsman. His work is perfection because he won’t stop until it is. He has a great ‘eye’ (which is great for me because mine don’t really work.) He is genuinely interested in my art & is one of my biggest champions. He made me an orange “S” for my Birthday. From scratch. Carved. Cut. Painted. Signed. And he used golf tees that he sanded to create a Braille “S” on the base he made for it. I love him.
He loves me.
Ana~ my eyes in Guard. Faithful. Kind. Fierce. Part coach, part guide, part mama, part friend. Her sweet baby X is my favorite. For my Birthday they created a precious piece that will forever have my heart. I love her.
She loves me.*
Bailey~ she is Sadie’s best friend & my extra big sister. She is the reason I made the Color Guard. When I told her what I wanted to do she never called me crazy. Instead she worked w me 1-on-1 until I was ready for auditions. Then she kept an eye on me for 2 years. She is also my aide in guard now that she is adulting. She captured our love for the sport & the beauty that covers up the intense long hard work to perform a competitive show.
I love her.
She loves me.
Kate~ my cousin’s boo-thang. She is fierce & fabulous. She is a woman & a strong 1! She gives me pep-talks & courage. She supports me & tells me I am an artist. She is an artist too! She made this paint brush for me. After she moved to Florida for work, she had to transition to all new things. She used art to soothe her heart & busy her hands while she was missing her people. She took my logo & loving hand stitched it for me. It is my prized possession. You see- I needed a bit of encouragement too. I had my 45th surgery a couple of months ago. So she recorded 1 of her amazing pep-talks for me in an audio file & sent it w a QR code so that as my eyes were bandaged in recovery, & I was missing my way to cope (painting) I could just aim my phone in its general direction & hear her comforting me & cheering me on. I love her. She loves me.
Colby~ he is blind too. We met on the elevator at Macy’s because we were both marching in the MGAMB. In an instant it was like we had never not known each other. We talked into the night after the Thanksgiving banquet. In a cruel twist of irony... we had been on the same bus for a week, but being blind, we didn’t see each other. He’s 4 states away. There is a lot that separates us. He has magnanimously received many creations from me & edifies me not just as an artist, but as a human. It is tough in this big world when you cannot see. And though our blindness is different, our hearts are very much the same. He draws things for me because I love Art & he is willing to create for me even though it is almost physically impossible & it makes me so very happy! I love him. He loves me.
Lily~ she belongs to my amazing Guard director. And she’s pretty awesome herself! She is always up in a big pile of Guard girls & flags & fuzzy PJ pants on the bus. She has like 50 big sisters between FHS & TTU. My mom was an elementary art teacher & was absolutely in love w her “littles.” I think Lily would have fit right in at my mom’s Art Studio making “Masterpieces” w the other little Artists. Because in that space, everyone was encouraged not just in their creativity, but in their humanity. And that’s just good for a kid. Lily loves to create for us & it makes our day to get a little something hand drawn from our guard kid. I love her. She loves me.
These people; Amber, Coleman (Ralph & Marla), Kaitlynne, Paige~ a couple of weeks into the school year when I was eye-patched & deeply pained. They showed up. They painted for hours. They finished by flashlight so that my senior parking space (yes parking space) could be finished along w the rest of those in the lot. They had things to do. They didn’t have to come. They didn’t have to lean in & listen to make my design come to life. But they did. Because that’s what they do. They show up. They get dirty. They help me through the hard patches. And I will show up for them every time. Bet. I love them. They love me.
This brings me to tonight & what inspired this post... This senior year has been a train wreck. Almost everything that is a tradition has been cancelled. That includes the Senior Reception for the band. So these Band Boosters took what was a garbage fire & used the heat to warm our hearts w a cool, creative, COVID-friendly celebration! A drive-by ‘party’ w presents & pictures! So. Freakin’. Awesome. And amongst the treasures in a big white gift sack w my name on it was this ornament. It is perfect! It is about guard & band & the class of 2021 & it sparkles & has my name in it & honors the traditions we have in band (even if we could not participate in many of them.) it is a frick-fracking’ MASTERPIECE! And it made me reflect on all the people who are here for me when it is fun & when it is hard & when it is boring & when I am scarred. These Band Boosters- I don’t think you can ever understand how they love us & love us well. Thank you for 4 amazing years! I love you. I am grateful that you love me.
Scout :)