Mommy Dearest

I miss her. I miss my mother every day, every hour, every minute, every second. She died of breast cancer when I was 14. The pain is still tremendous; the wound never healed. The time passes and the memories grow distant, but the pain remains. I bring up my mother because I believe that's where I got my artistic ability. I believe artistic ability is innate, whereas creativity can be gleaned. You can become an artist by learning and practicing, but I think the seed is genetic. And I definitely believe that everyone is creative given the chance. When I was 12, my mother brought me down to the crawlspace in the basement. There she unearthed 12 oil paintings; mostly still life and portraits. She said that she painted them when she was young. Her mother bought her paint and she just started creating; no lessons, no advice, no prodding. I was blown away. They were so professional! I can't believe that they were created by a novice hand. She was an artist with a capital "A." But there's more. She then showed me an old record - thick, black, one-sided, and played at 75rpms. It was from the 50's and it was her demo. There were 5 songs on it, and the sound that emanated from this 5 ft., stunning, pint-size woman was tremendous! She had pipes like Barbara Streisand. Again, I was blown away. She said the reason she never pursued her talents was that she got married and wanted a family. Oh, and while I was growing up, she was taking sculpture classes and created beautiful pieces from stone! She didn't start with simple clay, but marble. I'm convinced she could have been famous - for her multiple talents. Incredible. Not only was her life cut short at age 41, but I'm sure that the world has been denied of a major talent; that of which the capacity will never be realized. At least I know where my artistic ability comes from. That I'm certain.

In memory of Mimi Leifer, 1940 - 1981. I miss you….