Another reason why I lov Richeh so much is that in this day and age we really need a perspective like hers.
We consume so much more than we make and it shows.
There's just so much out there, and we spend our time looking at other people's stuff and absorb expectations about how our words should sound, what our art should look like, we see how people react to other people's stuff. How we react.
And if you're someone who makes stuff, sometimes you might get that pressure to make more of what people actually want. Even if that would no longer be you. Even if you know deep down that you should be making things for you.
It's not easy living in that middle ground where you're able to appreciate what other people make without feeling like there's no use making anything yourself because it would be redundant.
And you can't detach completely if you want to be aware of the social meaning that things have, and you don't want to accidentally make a statement you disagree with just because you enjoy the aesthetics.
When I was a student I rebelled against having to read other people's book interpretations before forming my own opinion. I was told that you need to read those papers and cite them on purpose so the teacher knows you didn't plagiarize. And I was like yes but I came up with that same interpretation on my own and you want me to accept that there's no value in that, just because someone else got to it first and published it.
So yeah. It's good to be aware but at the same time I fully believe that if you're someone who creates, you should create more than you consume. That's a big part of why some of us say we're going to do this and that, but we don't actually do anything. Consuming is just so much easier and by now it's pretty much expected, it's what everyone does, it's how everyone spends their time.
But that art that is yours and no one else's, it's still there, aching to be made by you.
At some point you do have to stop researching and consuming, and you have to take the time to make your own stuff. Even if you feel it doesn't hold a candle to stuff made by others.
At least you're putting feelings into words, or shapes and colors, or whatever, so you don't have to carry them around wherever you go. Art that was never made is the heaviest burden.
So yeah I'm grateful that we have Richeh as a character who prioritizes being herself, and finds ways to stay true to herself even if sometimes she has to compromise.
It takes courage to admit that something is not working out for you, and I'm glad that Richeh didn't let that learning experience dull her shine even a little, or push her into a spiral of shame.
And for us irl, if we're creative people, we need to remember what our true passion is, and spend more time doing that. If you love supporting other people's creations, great. If you love creating, you can't let yourself go with the flow, you can't live like someone who is happier experiencing what others made. Even if that's how we often bond, by sharing other people's stuff with each other. You still have the same 24h in the day and what you do with your time matters, because unmade art will come back and haunt you.
You're creative. You have your own separate mission. Don't get derailed. Do your own magic.
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