Fabian Debora's talk in class was very inspiring. My first Key Takeaway from his story was that even though he was punished for his art expression in school as a boy, he never let that stop him from continuing to use art as expression and escape. When I was in middle school I was the most free I'd ever been. I went to an experimental arts magnet school in the Minneapolis inner-city. I was spending most of my time doing theatre, but I also explored fashion design, songwriting and music, painting, photography, and dance. When going into high school I was forced to switch school districts. I was dropped into a colder environment, where art was seen as "uncool." I was also one of the only students of color. Trying to fit in, I stopped practicing all art other than theatre, and I stopped wearing my own designs and started wearing what all the other girls were wearing. I think it was very brave of Fabian to continue drawing even though his teacher embarrassed him in class. I know if that had happened to me I probably would have shut down completely. Now, when that happens to young people, he has become a resource for those people to get the support they need.
Another takeaway was that his program was initially rejected by Homeboy, but he accepted that and waited until the time was right, and now he's running his program the way he wants to. It's easy for people to burn bridges or swear something off when it doesn't go our way. I know that Fabian had faith in his program idea and in himself, and his perseverance was very inspiring.
Over Lockdown I've been trying to broaden my artistic horizons by learning how to draw. I haven't doodled anything for at least eight years, and I never thought I'd be able. Personally, for many years I'd describe myself as going through a "creative block." This "block" has effected me negatively in many ways, not just artistically, but also in my self-esteem and personal relationships. I believed that I couldn't accomplish anything other than what I've been trained specifically to do. I was scared of even dipping my toes in the water for fear that I'd forget how to swim. After having class with Fabian, and seeing what his students accomplish, many who, he said, had never done art before, I was inspired to try to learn myself. So I just googled "How to draw Spider-man," one of my favorite comic-book characters. It took me a long time, but I actually did it. I hadn't felt that good in a long time. I was like coming home after a long vacation to your favorite restaurant and your favorite meal. After drawing I felt confident that I could do many more things that I never thought possible because I was too scared to take the first step. I assume that what I felt after doing one little drawing is nothing in comparison to how Fabian's students feel after his entire program.
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