Jul 23

Written by: glendajoy
7/23/2008 9:10 PM

I have this reoccurring dream. The setting is always the same. Sometimes there are parts of the event in the dream that change, but the opening scene is always the same.

I am standing behind a curtain in the wings looking at a grand stage. There is nothing on the stage except a very large black concert piano.

There is a very large crowd gathered, and I can hear the buzz of their corporate conversation as I look over the grand theatre seating of more than one level. I cannot even estimate the number of the crowd.

There is going to be a concert and everyone is patiently waiting for it to begin. And, curiously enough, I am the concert pianist they are waiting for.

As I stand in the wings, I am thinking to myself, “How did I get here? I don’t even know how to play the piano, much less put on some kind of classical concert.” In my dream, as in my waking hours, the extent of my piano playing expertise is a very crude version of Chop Sticks that I learned as child.

But, there I stand. Ready to cross the stage. I keep thinking that if I begin to play, that I can fool them by playing an eloquent, self-composed mish-mash of keys. Artistic expression. And, the thought is always in my mind that I just might pull it off and make them believe I am just an unconventional pianist.

And then, another part of me believes that if I am just bold enough to go out there, that God will enable me to do something that I cannot do, and not only barely, but to do it with excellence.

It occurred to me the other day, that the dream is actually a perfect picture of my life right now. In October of last year, I began the adventure of a lifetime and began to pursue photography fulltime. That shift has continually placed me in situations where I understand thoroughly that I do not possess everything I need to do what I am attempting to do.

I fully understand that any one with a digital camera can be a photographer these days. I don’t claim any kind of expertise. When I capture something special in a photograph, probably no one is more surprised than I am. And when God allows me to capture something full of wonder, I am both amazed and delighted by it myself. I whisper a ‘thank you’ to Him every time.

So, if you happen to come to one of the galleries or shows where some of my images are on display, and wonder what in the world is she doing there- know this- I am wondering the very same thing! It is an absolute curiosity to me also. But then, check out the smile on my face, and know that I am not letting that stop me from walking on that stage everyday, sitting down at that fine piano before me, and being prepared to do what I fully understand I cannot do.

Copyright ©2008 glenda clark

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