I came across this post on Facebook recently:
“I’m teaching my last class in a few hours. I’ve been a professor of textile design for twenty-something years, but it’s sort of on an ‘as needed’ basis. And there’s been a decline in enrollment, so I don’t think I’m needed anymore. I’ll have to figure out what else to do with my time. I don’t want to just start binge-watching Netflix. I could always go work as a receptionist somewhere. But I’d like to think I have something particular to express, and that if I pour my energy into it, and I’m disciplined enough, then something will come out of it. But it takes bravery to be creative, right? You know, you look at Pinterest or whatever, and it looks like everything’s been done already. It’s easier to find the confidence when you’re 25, or 35, or even 45; you can kind of convince yourself that you're cool and hip and, you know, of the moment. If I was still in my thirties maybe I’d invest in going to art school or something. But at this age, it’s kind of like: is that really worth the investment? At an age where most people are thinking of retiring? It’s a question of time. Because how many more years do I have of actually working, creating? But also, it’s a self-worth question. If I do a two-year degree, I’m almost sixty. If I do a four-year degree, I’m definitely sixty. You worry about investing all that time, all that money, all that energy. And then kind of being mediocre, you know, at that thing. And that would be hard to swallow at this age, right? You kind of want to finish on top.”
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