Creative Ignorance is Bliss

This Mid-Week Oasis Moment was inspired by the amazing commencementaddress given by award winning novelist, graphic novelist andscreenwriter Neil Gaiman last year at The University of the Arts. (seemore below) One of the many fabulous reminders I took away from hiscaptivating and inspiring speech was that not knowing the rules can be a good thing.

To quote Gaiman,

"When you start out on a career in the arts you have no idea what you are doing.

Thisis great. People who know what they are doing know the rules, and knowwhat is possible and impossible. You do not. And you should not.

The rules on what is possible and impossible in the arts were made by people who

had not tested the bounds of the possible by going beyond them. And you can.

Ifyou don't know it's impossible it's easier to do. And because nobody'sdone it before, they haven't made up rules to stop anyone doing thatagain, yet."

Though his speech was written for and delivered to a group of college graduates,
it nonetheless spoke directly to my heart - the heart of a 48 year old woman
long past my own college graduation and well into my third or fourth career.
(depending on whether or not you count working on a private sailboat in the Caribbean
as a career move, which I do) Hearing Gaiman's wise, compassionate and inspiring words
filled me with as much hope and desire to go forth and live my creative dreams
as if I too were just starting out in the "real world."

Click here to see video of his wonderful speech and read more reminders that

I believe can serve all of us pursuing our creative dreams no matter how long ago
we finished school, or if like Gaiman, we never pursued higher education at all!