I received an email describing the scene of a reading class in which the young boy announced, “It’s a frickin’ elephant”, and so it was. There on the page, beneath the photo, the caption read “African Elephant”.
On Saturday, when Julie brought the girls over, I shared the story with her and Beth. Of course, this led to an explanation when the little girls didnt understand. As I explained that there are two kinds of elephants – Indian and African – wonderful four year old Samantha added “and Mexican!” – to which I had no reply, but doubled over laughing.
I wonder how this hemisphere might have developed if there had been such a creature. Imagine what pyramids the Mayans might have built. Could the conquistadors have conquered if their armored horses had lined up against the magnificent Mexican Elephant?
The working of a child’s mind is fabulous. They make connections that only a child’s mind can. We laugh at their innocent comments precisely because they are innocent. If they werent, there would be no humor. Without the innocence of childhood behind it, the remark might be seen as racist, or insensitive at the least. Somehow, though, “Indian and African” naturally led little Samantha’s mind to insert “Mexican”.
What if I could approach my art in such a way. What if I could draw out of the clutter of information that fills my mind just a bit from here and a bit from there and put them together in a way that somehow made sense? What if I could mix mountains and marlins and Mexican elephants into something cohesive and beautiful? I am not so innocent. I’m tainted.
That’s how it all started.
I received an email describing the scene of a reading class in which the young boy announced, “It’s a frickin’ elephant”, and so it was. There on the page, beneath the photo, the caption read “African Elephant”.
On Saturday, when Julie brought the girls over, I shared the story with her and Beth. Of course, this led to an explanation when the little girls didnt understand. As I explained that there are two kinds of elephants – Indian and African – wonderful four year old Samantha added “and Mexican!” – to which I had no reply, but doubled over laughing.
I wonder how this hemisphere might have developed if there had been such a creature. Imagine what pyramids the Mayans might have built. Could the conquistadors have conquered if their armored horses had lined up against the magnificent Mexican Elephant?
The working of a child’s mind is fabulous. They make connections that only a child’s mind can. We laugh at their innocent comments precisely because they are innocent. If they werent, there would be no humor. Without the innocence of childhood behind it, the remark might be seen as racist, or insensitive at the least. Somehow, though, “Indian and African” naturally led little Samantha’s mind to insert “Mexican”.
What if I could approach my art in such a way. What if I could draw out of the clutter of information that fills my mind just a bit from here and a bit from there and put them together in a way that somehow made sense? What if I could mix mountains and marlins and Mexican elephants into something cohesive and beautiful? I am not so innocent. I’m tainted.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: africa, art, beautiful, beauty, childhood, combine, comment, connection, Don Barnes, elephant, email, four year old, girls, india, insensitivity, laughter, marlin, mexican, mind, mountain, painting, racism, story