following directions. or not.

if i had to grade this mandala on execution, i'd give it an A ... however, if i had to give a grade based on following directions? i'm pretty sure i get an F .... cause... well.... i didn't follow directions ... luckily, i am not being graded on any portion .... and in fact, i can rationalize away the fact that i did not follow directions. you see, the word was chaos. does this look like chaos to you? no, me neither.

so i was going with what i thought the norm was ... what's life? straight and narrow and color between the lines? so that's what is in the middle ... straight and narrow and color and lines and just so .... and then the rest? more real life, less norm? reality? the reality of my closet, my thought processes, my children's rooms, my art studio, my to do list is that chaos is just a little bit different that the straight and narrow and color between the lines.  real life chaos is the unpredictable, the not so tidy and colored between the lines. sure, war is chaos, but in my life, so is the laundry room and dinner time and rushing out the door after breakfast.... but MY chaos doesn't bother me. it's just not quite coloring between the lines. it is me. it is more free form and unexpected and this way and that way .... the chaos is important. it's life. i like my chaos and all those happy doodles that are outside the lines.