You and whose army...

This is a long overdue post.

Here is the deal. I feel I have a large supportive army behind me and I don't thank them as often as I would like. These people talk to me, write me, laugh and cry with me. These people inspire me, support me (sometimes with their purchases), but more often with their advice, time, attention, energy and love. I can't thank you all specifically, as I imagine some of my army would like to remain somewhat anonymous. I hope this post will still carry as much weight without a list of names and reciprocating web and blog links. I hope you can feel it in your heart what you mean to me and that you will know I am talking to you.

Thank you to everyone who has ever emailed or told me you saw my work, whether online, in a publication, or in the flesh and told me that it moved or inspired you. Thank you to everyone who reads and comments on my blog, blip, myspace, and facebook pages. Thank you to anyone who has made it a point to come up and talk to me at a gallery opening, or in my studio about my art. I feed off your positive energy. Thanks to all my teachers, good and bad who had a hand in shaping my artistic voice, you pushed me hard either way. I loved to work hard to impress you, learn more, and grow. I worked just as hard to prove you wrong about me if you ever had any doubts. Thanks to my best friends, who share their music, movie and book selections with me and keep feeding my soul when it gets empty. Without you I wouldn't keep playing this game. Thanks to all the artists that have come before me and left their beautiful, flawed lives behind in their art and stories. Thanks for all the living artists who give advice away freely and inspire and encourage. Thanks for all the people in my life who know I struggle at times, thanks for the ones who worry and let me vent and say ridiculous things when I need to. Thanks to my family for encouraging me on this path, even though sometimes it is clear it has not always been the easiest or healthiest choice. I have the most amazing friends from all over the world, and that is because of my art, and if that is all my art ever really gets me then that is good enough and I am very fortunate.

I do really think about you, my wonderful army of supporters, friends, family, and peers and I do use your strengths when I am feeling less than stellar; when I am unsure, when I am tired and low. I call on you and you always seem to come and pull me up and through.

Please know I am in your army too, and I've got your back.

Love,
Megan