"Growing Up"

This is a picture of "JMo." In my Sculpture class senior semester senior year I had to create a self-portrait sculpture. Obviously my sculpture skills weren't very good as you see JMo, but I posted the picture for the meaning behind JMo. I ambitiously began the project to make a girl jumping with wings. I wanted to use Kelly Clarkson's song "Breakaway" and make my self-portrait taking a leap of faith and learning to fly. I was about to finish college and anticipated the huge transition that the next year would bring. However, the night before the project was due, as I was finishing JMo I could not artistically create the vision I wanted. Instead I created the above sculpture. Minutes before class I still did not have an explanation of how JMo represented me. When my professor called on me, I rambled about how JMo was wearing a fancy dress and looked grown up (well as much as duct tape can!). I said I identified with JMo because I often felt like I was playing dress up. I would appear grown up or do grown up things--but yet on the inside sometimes I still felt like a scared little girl.
As this quarter closed I realized how much that spontaneous last minute sculpture truly fit the place I am at right now. Seminary is filled with academic challenges but it also has brought me the challenge of growing up. I suppose it all comes with graduating college, moving 3,000 miles away, and starting grad school... I can't really put into words the process that I've gone through and continue to go through but I appreciate the challenge of this time and the people that have and continue to walk alongside of me through it.