jrowe

A Friend Like Ozzy

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I’ve chosen to take the monthly prompt “mental heroes” as a way to look back and see what my mental heroes looked like dating all the way back to my childhood. I had this one stuffed animal that I just couldn’t ever part with, and his name was Ozzy. Ozzy was a friend to keep at night to keep the monsters at bay, but his specialty was helping me throughout the day. Like keeping me company, keeping my secrets, and just being there for me. I can honestly say Ozzy saved me from the hardships of elementary school. I’ve chosen to draw my piece in a format of a child’s to again showcase that all of this is through the mind of my 7-year-old self.

The Guide of Life

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I chose my dog, his name is S’mores, as my mental health hero. After a long day, going home and spending time with my dog always makes me happy. I drew that landscape to describe the highs and lows of life. The right part of the drawing represents the sad parts of life. My dog and I are passing over the bridge to the other side. He is guiding me and helping me be happy.

Reggie; Our Mentor

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Reggie is the CEO/founder of Project Aware, a program that helps kids learn to cope with their emotions. There are thousands of things I could say about this amazing man. He’s done so much for me and my partner, we’ve learned so much about not only ourselves, but others. We’ve learned to be more emphatic, more caring and loving. He asks us such out of the box questions that really make you reflect on yourself, and I have no idea where I’d be without him. He’s an amazing mentor, hardworking, and deserves to be celebrated. This artwork is something to reflect how much we truly care for him. He helps so many people in his processes and deserves to receive something for that.

Submerged

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I wanted to illustrate a scene that showcased how hope could help you recover from a dark mental state. The chains that the character is being held down with represents the circumstances and emotions that’s keeping her in a dark place, where the diving mask/bubbles represent hope in the situation, as it’s keeping her stable until she can find a solution to escape from the shackles. There is always a surface, no matter how deep down you are in the sea.

Callused Hands

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This entry is a dedication to my mom. I wanted to tell the story of her struggles and how much I really appreciate her. Her selflessness is something I want to carry with me as I grow older. And I hope that others can take away something greater from this: You can tell a lot about a person by their hands. And in this case, my mom is an amazing person.

Resilience

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This piece is about the hope and resilience of the Ukrainians in the War raged by Russian leader, President Vladimir Putin. When the war first began many photographers and journalists captured the devastation and shock of Ukrainians. A photo was captured of a woman awaiting a train out of Kyiv. The way her hands were held together and the way she looked made me want to understand her emotions. She looked terrorized by the uncertainty of her country’s situation. But later this year, as the war unfolds the morale of the Ukrainians shows power. Once predicted not to even last 3 months, they have lasted almost 10 and counting. The Ukrainian people had hope and something to fight for. I think this women embodies both the terror and the flickering hope that has overrun Ukraine.

Justice for Hope

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I drew this during the Black Lives Matter movement and COVID lockdown. It gave my little sister and I the chance to spend time together and bond during a challenging time. Being black myself, I learned that my life may be more difficult and different than others around me who may not experience the same bias or criticism because they are not black. I have to prepare myself for whatever may come my way because of the color of my skin. But I hope that whatever comes is more positive than negative.

Reaching Out

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My artwork relates to something I’ve been thinking about for a while. I’ve been doubting my art skills a lot and I feel like I’m not on the same level as other people my age. I’ve realized that I shouldn’t be comparing myself to the people around me and that I should look at their success and use that to motivate me to be better instead of feeling bad about it. Also seeing the people I look up to support and compliment me and my art gives me hope and motivates me to get better and reach my goals.

A Kind Older Sister

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I drew a picture of my older sister. She has inspired me. She has supported me. And she has used her incredible influence for good. I went into freshman year of high school practically knowing no one. I had transferred from a charter school to a traditional public school that was in another district. Predictably, I felt extremely lonely, and the experience was all but overwhelming to me. However, my older sister who I’ve depicted here, was a junior at the time, and she watched out for me. She put her best efforts forward to be there for me and to be my friend. She introduced me to her friends and helped me integrate into this new school. I thank her for that, and her kind actions mean so much to me.

Growing Flower Tree

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“When a plant is well nurtured, it starts to grow. Something that helped me bring back hope for the future was speaking affirmative words and phrases before leaving home and before starting anything new.”