A Deadline, a Little Faith, and the Messy Magic of Creativity
- Nov 18, 2025
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 4
Welcome, Pinterest friends! If you clicked over from that behind-the-scenes studio moment, here’s the story behind it.
Welcome, Pinterest friends! If you clicked over from that behind-the-scenes studio moment, here’s the story behind it.
You know those moments when a deadline walks into the room first, and your confidence shows up ten minutes late?
That was me in the studio today. I reached past my familiar oils and grabbed the acrylics—because they dry fast…sometimes too fast.
I didn’t plan for this to happen.
But an email subject line reeled me in:“This is perfect for you. Jump on it.”
So of course, I clicked.
My local county had funding set aside to purchase original art—annually.
The deadline was tomorrow at 4 p.m.
And the work had to be a specific size.
I didn’t have one.
So I stood there, acrylics in hand, staring at a blank canvas with equal parts hope and doubt.
Studio moment: This is what it looks like when acrylics dry faster than I do.
My hands wanted the palette knife (always).
My heart wanted reassurance.
What I got instead was faith.
The quiet kind that nudges you just one whisper past comfortable.The scrappy kind that shows up with a grin and says, “Try it anyway.”
Deadlines — especially the unexpected ones — have a way of pulling truths out of us:
what we cling to, what we avoid, what courage looks like at 6 a.m. on a Tuesday.
And today, courage looked like me squinting at the canvas, laughing at myself, and brushing on the first layer before I could overthink it.
Here’s what I remembered — again — standing there:
Faith softens the panic button.
Faith steadies the hand.
Faith spots the invisible and says, “Keep going. The magic’s coming.”
We all have our deadline moments—the kind that stir nerves, spark excitement, and whisper, “What was I thinking?”
But tough challenges don’t last.
Tough people do.
And tender-hearted people like you have carried me through more deadlines than you know.
If you’ve stepped out of your comfort zone lately—big or small—I’d love to hear about it.
Your stories inspire me more than you realize.
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