For as long as I can remember, art has always been a significant figure in my life. As a child, I would watch action movies and afterward pretend to jump and kick like the people I saw on the screen. And occasionally, my mother would spot me doing so only for me to notice her presence mid-jump, causing me to quickly regain myself and act like I was a normal child for once.
However, as I got older, the world became smaller and smaller and when I was in the third grade (and no, I’m not intentionally referencing Macklemore), I suddenly felt under attack on a daily basis. Every day, I would dread being around my classmates, and on most days when I got home, I was emotionally exhausted because at school I constantly fought for my right to exist.
I didn’t look forward to much. However, one thing that always gave me hope (aside from the only friend that I had… I’ll save that for another article) was art.
Just about every day, I encountered art and/or music through art class and piano lessons. Through both, I learned what creating something beautiful can do for you. I remember specifically one day in art class we were assigned to draw a poinsettia plant that was on display in the classroom. I worked so hard at getting every detail of the plant from the shades of the red leaves to the shadows caused by them. When I was finished, everyone in my class said that my drawing was so beautiful, even the people that made fun of me! I was proud to call something so beautiful a product of my own hands.
While I didn’t realize it, art was one of the few yet powerful forces that God designed to support me through such a negative time in my life. And if art can help me through one of the most negative experiences of my life, I believe that it can help someone else who is going through something terrible.
In light of this, I believe that art can not only help people being bullied, but also anyone going through a difficult time. And art isn’t just found in an art classroom or a music studio. Art can be found almost anywhere; all you have to do is allow your mind to look at life through a different set of lenses. And once you’ve found that thing that takes you away, I pray that you see that there is hope.
There is a verse from the Bible that is constantly quoted on Facebook pages, one-a-day devotions, and sermons yet I find that it is so relevant to this topic. Romans 5:3-4 says, “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…” I believe that God has created art to aid us in our sufferings. If we are able to produce something beautiful when life seems so dark, it shows that God is building “character” in us.
When I was being bullied, I never really imagined an end to my suffering. I thought about running away, leaving everything I had for something I thought was greater. But as I went to art class and played piano, I gradually saw that there was joy in my suffering.
