I recently learned that if someone Googles "Sarah Melling", this website pops up (so far, so good) with the subtitle: "Colored pencil drawings by Sarah Melling, a Silicon Valley artist with Parkinson's disease." Hmmm. I found this a bit disconcerting, but why? I am an artist, and yes, I live in Silicon Valley  and happen to have Parkinson's disease, but I was bothered by the fact that Google took the first few sentences of this bio and bestowed upon me an online identity. My intent, in writing this piece, was to point out how an unlucky occurrance led to my renewed interest in drawing. So perhaps I should substitute the words "Parkinson's disease" with "brown hair" or "nearsightedness" and see what happens. But for now, here's my story:

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“The object of art is not to make salable pictures. It is to save yourself."
—Sherwood Anderson

In early 2009, at the young-ish age of 51, I was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Since Parkinson's manifests itself a bit differently in everyone, my future was suddenly one giant question mark: Would my symptoms develop rapidly or slowly?  Would the symptoms remain only on my left side? (I'm right-handed.)

Most of the answers to my questions fell into the "wait-and-see" category. Sure, some things were pretty obvious: Those piano lessons I'd wanted to take as an empty-nester? I was pretty sure those weren't going to be happening, so,

why not revive a skill that I already have?

As a former interior and graphic designer, I loved to draw, but hadn't spent much time drawing in recent years. Well, there was no time for procrastinating now, was there? If I was going to renew my passion for pencils and paper, I knew I'd better get crackin'.

But what to draw? I find beauty in simple things, especially from nature. Working non-digitally, in graphite and colored pencil, seems to suit the simplicity of my subjects:

a handful of acorns from a morning walk,
an artichoke at the farmer's market,  
a huge sugar pine cone,
a tiny honeybee.

A new world opened up to me: online friendships were forged, communities joined, even a few business transactions took place, and eventually, I opened my Etsy shop. For the sheer joy of it, I started attending a weekly life-drawing meet-up.I sometimes think that I should be out there doing more marketing, but I'm really in this for the calm and the joy...I’m in it to save myself.

Update, September 10, 2021: What a couple of years, right? Well, I’ve traded Silicon Valley for the oak-filled semi-rural streets of Ventura County. It’s an adventure that we’re still adjusting to, but we’re a hop-skip-and-a-jump to my son and daughter-in-law house and have a brand-new grandson to visit at my daughter and son-in-law’s house in Tennessee. Not producing as much art, (no weekly life drawing yet) but I’m still busy (when I can be) with linocut printmaking, and collage, and.whatever makes me happy