My first mosaic attempt. Sad I know. At least I grouted this one.
I’ve been on this get-rid-of-clutter kick lately, cleaning out closets and hauling things to donation locations. I was digging through my stuff and noticed a couple mosaic projects I attempted.
I remembered how excited I was back then when I decided to start doing mosaics. I loved to draw and paint so I was totally excited about the idea.
I had this vision to create all these super cool pieces and made grand plans for becoming a mosaic artist. And by grand plans I mean I bought a bunch of books, and purchased a crapload of supplies.
I fell in love with the work of Sonia King and bought her book Mosaic Techniques & Traditions: Projects and Designs from Around the World . I just loooooved looking at all the photos. The pictures really moved me emotionally. I felt I had stumbled upon a passion and I couldn’t wait to get started.
I did two mosaics. One I never even finished grouting. They were decent for a beginner I guess. But I was disappointed with my mistakes and how imperfect the final pieces were. I felt frustrated because it took me so long to do just one. It didn’t come out like I had planned on paper.
You mean I have to do more than two mosaics to reach this level?
Working with the tiles was tedious; hours would go by and it seemed I had made little progress. When I was done with the first one (the pineapple), I was disappointed with the outcome.
So you know what I did? I quit doing it. I know, I rock! I was so obsessed with it being perfect, thinking I’d happily go about the whole process without a glitch, that I ended up disillusioned and frustrated. You see, I didn’t want to actually do all the work that goes into creating a mosaic; I just wanted the pretty finished product to display.
It made me think that fitness can be a lot like a big mosaic project. It may start with a great idea, but has to be followed with actual work to make it happen.
My ungrouted unfinished last mosaic. Maybe I should finish it?
The key to sticking with it is embracing the process. It starts with an intention and includes everything from getting ready for the workout physically and mentally to making sure you’re properly recovering from a workout afterwards. Like buying all the cool tools and fancy tiles for mosaic creation, all the fitness paraphernalia in the world won’t create a fit, strong body without the commitment that takes your workouts from an intention to the final product.
