Background: "The part of a picture or design that serves as a setting to the main figures or objects, or that appears furthest from the viewer."

We all have backgrounds. You. Me. All of us. From the wealthiest person to the poorest, we all have a history. Just as a painter begins to create his masterpiece, he first has to paint a background.

Our backgrounds are what defines us. It shows us who we are and where we have been. Without our backgrounds, who would we be? Nothing.

Since we were born, people have come in and out of our lives: family, friends, and acquaintances, painting their stroke on our canvas, hopefully, adding to our masterpiece.

Layered with lessons, laughter, sadness, and contemplation, each stroke carries its own importance. We all have our stroke on each other's canvas. Even if it was something just as simple as the word, "Hi," or if it is someone we have known our whole life, their stroke is on our canvas.

It seems deep and philosophical to compare a concept as grand as life to the simplistic mind of a painter. For some, life is as simple as painting, for others its more complex than a piece by Pollock. But, beneath the calamity and complexity of Autumn Rhythm (Number 30), there is a background.

The thesis for this article is that backgrounds are important. But why they are important is different for every individual. So, I ask you, will you turn around and look at your background? Will you continue to let people make their stroke on your canvas? And will you continue to put your stroke on others canvas?

We all are painters of each others life. Living continuously in each others backgrounds, presenting our colors in a vivid and vibrant way for the world to see.