IFJM Wrap-up

I’ve toyed with being a child for IFJM month several times, but always talked myself out of it – but the idea kept resurfacing.   It was so funny that my sister Joan decided to be a kid this year also.  As I stated before we began,  I haven’t decided what I want to be when I grow up, so I thoroughly enjoyed being and thinking like a 10-year-old for a month.  Actually, the thinking wasn’t too difficult – I still think that  way a lot of the time.   And I really got into the dialogue – and the writing.  LOL!   I had a lot of fun tilting my letters  and misspelling words. 

I kept my goal simple – to enjoy myself.  I tend to start things and not follow through, so it had to be fun or I wouldn’t stick with it.  (10 year old thinking???) I knew from having 11 grandchildren that kids like to use markers, and as a rule, they jump right in without preparation or reference photos.  The real me sneaked in a few times and used some reference material, but I tried to keep it as natural and spontaneous as possible.  I liked using markers, and I think I will continue to use them occasionally.  They are simple and portable, and worked well in the Strathmore Visual  Journal with the Bristol pages.  I don’t remember having markers when I was a kid – I guess my childhood predated them. 

I wanted to keep a similar format for each page – and since kids sometimes stick to “rules”  the visiting artist in the first post showed them to “draw something, write stuff, and make a border”, and this is what I/she did.  

I only missed one day.  I had an emergency root canal, and was on pain meds that made me groggy.  I could have just made it up on another day, but…..chose not to. 

I loved following the other artists’ journals.  Such widely different, original, creative ideas, and they pulled them off so well.  I looked forward to seeing what they came up with each day.  This was my 7^th year participating in IFJM (I counted them, and I think it is 7 for you too, Joan),and it’s always a lot of fun, and sometimes a lot of work too.  Thanks, Roz, for “inventing” this fun yearly journaling party, and inviting us all to join in.