on a bright, crisp, autumn Sunday afternoon.
It was just a regular Sunday for Rozza Rox. Spending time with family, enjoying a countryside walk and having a delicious, warm, traditional Sunday roast dinner on their return. With a full belly, laid back on his black-leather recliner chair, he remembered that his car was low on fuel. The day being a Sunday, he had more time to refuel, ready for a busy work week ahead.
Rozza was planning to go to the supermarket to refuel his car, but as he descended King’s Hill from Old Town, he thought he’d save his precious time going to a petrol station at the bottom of the hill, saving about 20 minutes. Saving time felt more important than saving 2p per litre today.
He undoes the petrol cap, sticks in the nozzle, and merrily refuels, contemplating his gratitude for this stunning Sunday. He lets out a contented sigh.
The nozzle clicks, indicating that the petrol tank is full, and suddenly, he sees someone familiar in his side mirror. His neurons fire, creating an immediate sense of recognition in his brain “I know that face” he feels viscerally. He walks towards the garage to pay for his fuel and it dawns on him “That’s Hercule Poirot!!” he shouts excitedly in his mind. He turns around, and boldly walks over to speak to the acting royalty that is, Sir David Suchet CBE.
Sir David is everything Rozza imagined: classy, polite, majestic, noble, articulate, warm and approachable. Rozza suggests taking a selfie, David replies genuinely: “That would be an absolute pleasure, Rozza”.
They capture the moment with a selfie then both part ways. Refreshed and uplifted from the brief encounter, on a crisp, Sunday autumn afternoon.
Reference photo: 📷 rozza.rox.9 on Facebook
Author’s note:
This little sketch I did with the accompanying story was significant in my art journey. A friend of mine inspired me to write about my work, the thoughts behind it, the motivations and the stories of the characters involved. This was my first attempt at putting a story around a piece.
It’s funny how a little comment from someone can inspire you to move in a different direction (A direction that I am enjoying a lot!). I have had a lifelong belief that I couldn’t write, due to failing my high school English exam three times.
I must say this to you now: your beliefs about you not being able to draw/paint/write etc. aren’t true. Someone may have told you you can’t do something, or you did it a few times and thought what you created wasn’t good enough. I get it!
All I can say is, If you enjoy doing something, do it!
Moving on nicely to one of my favourite quotes:
“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.”
– Vincent Van Gogh
Go and create something. Replace “paint” with anything you like. Prove yourself wrong. Then you’ll believe you can!
I’m breaking out this Warhol quote again:
“Don’t think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.”
I use the above quote in my posts a lot. It’s a reminder to me and I want to remind you too. I love the quote so much, I made a little wooden sign out of it.
Back to Rozza Rox…
It was heartwarming seeing his Facebook post about meeting Sir Suchet, I could see the joy on his face. Rozza himself, is a bundle of joy. I’ve met him a couple of times through an artist friend. He is always supportive of the art we create in our town. Every time I looked at his Facebook feed, he was at a different gig in another part of the country. Really embracing his spare time to the full!
We all need a Rozza, bigging up our lives and work!
We all need to learn from Rozza on how to let go and have some fun! It’s so easy to take life seriously.