The Journey of Life
October 2nd - 31st, 2024
The College of New Jersey
Art and Interactive Multimedia Building (AIMM)
Room 119
The Journey of Life is a series of eight watercolor paintings that tell the story of a young girl and her journey through her life, feeling like she is missing something. She travels through a forest to reach a mountain-scape that she plans on climbing, but runs into a couple of friends along the way. Eventually, she does make it to the top of the mountain but discovers it is not what she expected. She travels back down, disappointed in herself for believing she would find what she was missing by going on this journey. With the help of her friends, though, she picks herself back up and continues to move forward, not giving up. The story ends with her allowing herself empathy and compassion, knowing that her place on this earth is purposeful enough.
Being told through 8 detailed illustrations, this story interprets the struggles of my life. From battling with my mental health all of my life, I have continued to move forward even though many obstacles wanted to break me. It intends to teach the journey through life and how people doubt themselves and their abilities due to drawbacks in their lives. It explains that, although there are hurdles that we have to jump over and we may fall, it is important to pick ourselves back up. Staying down, or in this case, experiencing depression is difficult to remove yourself from. When the world seems to want to knock you down over and over, it is easy to give up and stay in the same place. Having the strength to admit and believe that your existence is more important than you may realize will give you the solidity to move forward. That is what this story tells through illustrative imagery. We all have a purpose in life, and as hard as it may feel to continue, you are always strong enough.
The Story
1. Walking Free, 2024
2. Lost in Thought, 2024
3. The Grey Path, 2024
4. Resistance, 2024
5. Growth, 2024
6. Head Held High, 2024
7. Balancing Life, 2024
8. Discovery of Purpose, 2024
9. Serenity is Found, 2024
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A girl once lived on a farm with a beautiful white and brown horse. They were tied at the hip and took care of each other when the world felt rough. The girl enjoyed her life on her little farm but always felt like something was missing. She felt she lacked motivation and didn’t know how to find it.
Every day she would climb up and sit in her favorite tree, looking off into the distance where the mountains stood behind the beaming green forest that seemed to always call to her.
One day, while staring into the forest, a realization hit her. That was it! She would take a journey through the unknown to find her purpose.
She prepared to set out early the next morning to travel through the woodlands to reach the highest mountain peak she loved dearly. She read about that place in her books, where people were said to have found what they were missing.
As the sun peaked from the summit at the first sign of daybreak, she looked off into the distance at the journey she was about to embark on. Saying goodbye to her only companion with a long and deep hug, and she was off.
Traveling with nothing but the clothes on her back, she jumped over fallen trees, heard the crunch of crispy leaves as she stepped on top of them, and felt the sunlight on her face breaking through trees. This was nothing compared to what the books she read described. It was better than anything she had ever laid her eyes upon.
After walking for some time, she came across a glimmering white wolf that stopped her in her tracks. The wolf stood tall while emanating power and strength. Its bright green eyes gazed at the girl, holding the contact until moving slightly closer. The girl reached her hand out in a welcoming gesture, feeling at peace with this new friend that she had made along the way.
As the girl continued on her journey up the forest trail, the wolf was never too far behind, making sure she was safe.
While traveling in the deepest part of the woods, the girl began to see an alluring open field that contained nothing but a wide grassy field with an intense shade of green. The wolf walked up beside her, standing in front to prevent her from continuing forward, as it sensed danger. Looking down at the wolf, the girl’s heart began to beat faster as she stepped around and started walking forward anyway.
She scanned the field until she laid eyes on a lion sitting in the center near a patch of yellow flowers. Without thinking, she walked right up and kneeled in front of him. She had never seen a creature quite as beautiful as this one, which caused her to reach up toward him. She cupped the side of his face, feeling his breath blowing air onto her face.
His eyes slowly opened, and he looked down. They stared at each other in silence. An instant connection was felt between the two, causing emotion to sprout in the girl’s chest. The girl felt calm, and her heart ceased racing. She then stood up and walked back to the wolf, urging the lion to follow.
She could see the mountains getting closer and closer the more they walked. This was the moment she had been waiting for. They had finally reached the mountainscape, and the girl was getting ready to make her way up to the top, but the wolf wouldn’t follow. The wolf bowed its head down as if to tell her that she must go the rest of the way alone.
So on she went, with the wolf and lion waiting down below. Finally making it to the top, she noticed that she didn’t feel as accomplished as she had hoped. Something was off, but she didn’t know what. All of a sudden, a tan creature with black speckles appeared on top of a large boulder.
She knew not to engage with this predator, which she had known to be a reckless and impulsive animal. The cheetah began to growl, causing her to take a step back, almost slipping off the cliff with the movement. Immediately, the lion appeared behind her, helping her to regain her balance and taking his place beside her. Slowly, the lion and girl backed away, retreating down the mountain to where the wolf was waiting.
Sitting with her new friends, she contemplated what she was going to do now that her plan had failed. She had felt embarrassed for leaving her home and thinking that she could find her life’s true purpose by climbing to the top of a mountain. Although it wasn’t her fault, she felt like she could have prevented all of this from happening if she had just stayed on her little farm and not gone on her exploration.
While she was lost in thought, the lion nudged her shoulder, as if to let her know that everything would be alright. She placed a hand on his head to thank him and stood up to continue moving forward because she wasn’t about to give up just because she had hit an obstacle. That was not the kind of person that she was.
The lion and wolf didn’t follow as closely this time but kept a watchful eye to ensure she stayed safe. She broke apart from the trail and entered a hidden area of the forest where leafy trees grew and a lively river flowed. Walking along a stump that had fallen across the moving water, she noticed a zebra stopping for a drink. As she made it to the other side, the Zebra looked up in curiosity and began to follow.
Now with three new friends on her tail, she gained more confidence in her journey, feeling that sense of purpose that she had been searching for. With a smile on her face, she continued walking straight, eventually reaching another river. The sun reflected onto the water with vibrant colors as it rippled in the wind.
Suddenly, with excitement growing inside, she ran and jumped right into the river without a second thought. Coming up from underneath the iridescent colors, she laughed and allowed the water to hold her as she floated on her back. She soaked in the vitamin D that shone from above, inhaling the scent of musk and pine. All of this while the animals that followed stayed near, observing how she absorbed the peacefulness of the forest.
Once she climbed out, she squeezed the excess water from her hair. She continued to survey the moving water when two tiny heads popped up. Two playful otters appeared to be glancing her way, and with a smile on her face, she waved.
At last, taking in the essence of nature, the girl finally realized that this whole time she was being too hard on herself. Her whole life, she felt as if something was missing and that she was not doing enough, never allowing herself the love and empathy that her animal friends had given her.
Allowing herself to feel at peace, the pressure and weight on her shoulders released themselves. Ultimately, she understood that it was okay not to know exactly where your place was in the world. No matter what you do, your presence on this Earth has meaning and purpose. Life will guide you in the right direction when it feels that you are ready because everything happens for a reason.
