Inner work frameworks, practices, and questions – all in a five-minute read. Delivered to your inbox every Wednesday morning before you even wake up. Written and curated by Andrew Lang.
What are you putting on canvas? The Wednesday 1-2-3
Happy Wednesday Reader!
As we close out 2023, I want to thank all of you so, so much for your support, replies, questions, stories, and presence. This is our 52nd edition of The Wednesday 1-2-3 in as many weeks and being able to put it together every Friday, edit it Monday, and schedule it for Wednesday has brought me an immense amount of joy this year.
If you have any favorite teachings or insights it helped spark in you this year, please hit "reply" and let me know – I would love to hear what and how it has connected!
With that – here's 1 teaching, 2 questions, and 3 resources to explore this week:
1. Teaching
In 1963, a young 20-year old Bob Ross was transferred from an Air Force base in Florida to Eielson Air Force Base just outside Fairbanks, Alaska.
(For those who didn’t know – yes, Bob Ross was in the military.)
It was here he discovered his love for painting, staring at the mountains and beautiful Alaskan scenery. Changing into his painter’s hat each day when he got off shift, Ross would practice at home and sell his landscapes (painted onto gold-panning tins) to tourists at one of the local pubs.
And it was here he felt the contradiction that would shape much of the rest of his life.
Known as “Bust ‘em up Bobby” by others in the military, Ross hated the persona he had crafted for himself. He was never comfortable with the mean, aggressive, angry person he felt he needed to be (and was celebrated for with career promotions.)
He found that painting offered him a way to escape:
Howard Thurman refers to each of us having the “sound of the genuine” within us and I think this is what Bob Ross experienced in his painting. He found a practice that gave his inner voice a way to sing and make tangible his desires and dreams for the world.
Later, long after he had retired from the military, he would share his foundational approach to painting on one of his many episodes:
The New Year holiday is one of the few cultural rituals we have marking change, renewal, and hope. With that in mind, I offer the questions below for your reflection and dreaming in the coming days.
Happy New Year everybody 🎉
2. Questions
- What is the “vision in your heart” you have not yet named out loud or put “on canvas?”
- How can you remove a bit of busyness in the new year so that you might listen for your inner voice and discern what dream or beauty it has to offer?
3. Resources
- Read more about Bob Ross (article)
- "The 10 greatest Bob Ross quotes of all time" (article)
- Krista Tippett and Rev. Otis Moss III on Howard Thurman, the Sound of the Genuine, and Activism (podcast episode)
⏪ If you missed last week's email:
Sending you good vibes,
Andrew
The Wednesday 1-2-3
Inner work frameworks, practices, and questions – all in a five-minute read. Delivered to your inbox every Wednesday morning before you even wake up. Written and curated by Andrew Lang.
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