This is is a note to myself at age 14.

I WAS in the eighth grade and was told not to even think about going to collage. I couldn’t add or subtract, never could memorise the multiplication tables, was advised against taking algebra, geometry, physics, chemistry. Since i was good with my hands, i was advised to aim for trade school, perhaps “body and fender” work.

NEVER let anyone define what you are capable of by using parameters that don’t apply to you. 

I APPLIED to a junior collage in my hometown with “open enrolment”, got in and embarked on a career in the visual arts. 

VIRTUALLY EVERYTHING i’ve done is influenced by my learning disabilities. I think i was driven to paint portraits to commit images of friends and family to memory. I have face blindness, and once a face is flattened out, i can remember it much better.

INSPIRATION is for amateurs — the rest of us just show up and get to work. Every great idea i’ve ever had grew out of work itself. 

SIGN ON to a process and see where it takes you. You don’t have to invent the wheel everyday. Today you will do what you did yesterday and tomorrow you will do what you did today. Eventually you will get somewhere.

NO ONE gets anywhere without help. Mentors, including your parents and an occasional teacher, can make you feel “special” even when you are failing in other areas. Everyone needs to feel special. 

MY FATHER died when i was 11 and that was a tragedy of my life, a horrible thing to happen when you are so young. Oddly enough there was a gift in this tragedy. I learned very early in life, that the absolute worst thing can happen to you and you will get past it, and you will be happy again. Loosing my father at a tender age was extremely important in being able to accept what happened to me later when i became a quadriplegic.

IF YOU are Overwhelmed by the size of a problem — break it down into many bite-size pieces.

QUADRIPLEGICS DON’T envy the able-bodied - we envy paraplegics. We think they’ve got a much easier row to hoe. 

THERE IS always someone worse off than you.

I am confident that no artist has more pleasure day in and day out from what he or she does, than i do.

“I can’t think of anything better than standing next to men I would consider heroes and proclaiming their greatness.”

Murray Walker