So in June I applied for MINT's Leap Year, because my studio space is my dining room table. Then I moved on, because the best way not dwell on a sent application is to start on the next one.

When I got in to the Leap Year Application show, I was thrilled but you know, nervous. I had heard mixed reviews as to whether getting into the show was any indication that you were a finalist or not, but regardless, I was happy to exhibit a piece there. While I felt an initial insecurity in my small, formal & not flashy painting, the reception that it got at the opening was positive.

I pushed it out of mind again, until I saw the event for live announcement of the three Leap Year winners. Immediately, I thought, "Oh, no I'm not going." I imagined that it would be like an award show, with a camera zooming in on my face, disappointment written all over it. My friend urged me to go while my husband agreed that my fears were reasonable.

I convinced myself that there would be no camera looking for me & that most people probably wouldn't recognize me. Unsettled & undecided, I did not have peace until I realized that the only right thing to do was to push out envy with encouragement. Unity is a better option than a you versus me mentality.

When I went to MINT that night, it was dark and crowded. Candice Greathouse (the curator) got a spotlight to make then announcement and confessed that she was, "Nervous even though I already know who won." She recapped the award's prizes and the news that the winners would each get a solo show at the end of the year instead of the group show from years past. Curtis Ames, Hez Stalcup & Ashley Anderson, previous winners each opened up an envelope with a winner's name and announced it to the crowd.