The Pictures We Create

I have always been fascinated by the relationship between words and pictures. I learned to read as a kid mainly so I could read the funnies on my own– especially Peanuts. Something about the combination of those abstract letters floating over those pictures appealed to me. I began to draw comic strips on my own, but it would take me years to discover why that original combination of words and pictures held such a deep appeal to me.

I’m now a middle school English teacher, and I try to teach my students that it’s not enough to tell us when you write—you have to show us. It’s all about the pictures. For instance, if I ask a class to write about a best friend, I will get a slew of generic essays: my friend is funny, fun, and nice. They all sound alike. But when I ask the class to create pictures, these friends suddenly come to life. Pictures appear. My friend and I try on crazy socks at J.C. Penny. My friend made me laugh so hard chocolate thick shake flew out my nose. My friend let me stay on his couch when my parents were fighting.

This is the oldest writing lesson in the world, but I’ve begun to realize that it is more than that. I assigned my eighth graders the task of writing “This I Believe” essays the past two years, and what I came to realize, reading their stories, seeing their beliefs, is that this idea of general and specific isn’t just about writing. It’s about life.

If I think about the kind of person I want to be, the main ideas I want to express with my life, the only way to live out those main ideas is to do specific things—to create pictures with my life. I can’t just say I want to be a good father. I need to make a Rubik’s Cube Halloween costume for my son or play a game with my daughter. I can’t just say I want to be a good husband; I need to help with the dishes. I can’t just say I want to be a good teacher; I need to take time to talk with students about their writing individually.

I ask my students, and myself, to think about what their pictures say about their lives. What do your specific pictures say about the main idea of your life? Do you even have a main idea?

I have come full circle; now I draw a comic strip about teaching for my local newspaper. Every day I take my general thoughts about education and turn them into words and pictures about pencils, gum, books, and students: abstract words floating over specific pictures. I believe that all of life is found in the balance between the general and the specific, the big idea and the little detail, the ideals we aim for and the actions that help us live out our ideals. It’s all about the pictures we create with our lives, and what those pictures say.

This I believe.