I’ve been given a gift. Not my ability to draw. Not my ability to sing (that would be more of a curse.). No, I’ve been blessed with the ability to believe something will happen even when the facts point strongly against it. It’s hard to explain, really. I have moments of doubt. Lots of doubt. I’m not a homing pigeon who flies straight to a goal. But somewhere in me, I have this gut feeling that I will achieve something. And eventually I do. My Dad once told me after he saw me speak, “You’re the first person I’ve met who knew what he was going to do at eight and actually did it.” That was the finest compliment I could have received.
When I was eight, I believed I would be an editorial cartoonist. And I had plenty of reasons why I wouldn’t. I kept hearing it was a dying art-form. That I wasn’t good enough. That papers weren’t hiring. I worked as a janitor, an advertising artist, a creative director and then eventually an editorial cartoonist. I’ve been a Pulitzer Finalist twice and seen my work hang on the walls of the Mississippi Museum of Art. My work has been printed in The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Time Magazine and USA Today. I knew I would make it and I did.
Lately, my dream has been challenged. Once again, I’ve come across those who don’t believe in me or my talent. It hasn’t been easy.
But let me tell you this: I have in my core the sense that greater things are ahead. That this is a transition for me to use my talents for greater things. I don’t worry about those who don’t believe — because I do. You may have similar challenges and blessings ahead of you. I know you’ll meet them head on. It’s a gut feeling.
Happy New Year. Thank you for reading and enjoying my work. And may we have the best year ever.
Amen.