Tagging

I find facinating becausethe main thing you see in it is need. A need for attention, for affection, for family and for love and a gang is not the place to find any of that. Tagging also starts in the teen or even pre-teen years and again shows the need and vulnerability of the tagger. The kids take on a "tag" or nickname so you know who the tagging belongs to and one I found really vulnerable was named Devine. Big fluffy pillowy letters that leaned into each other for support but always surrounded in some way. The two most memorable...one surrounded by directional arrows pointed every which way, the other a bramble bush with long sharp thorns. So telling in its symbolism.

Every once in a while one of these artists will find a way to go to a graphic arts school and make something of their talent because there can be real artistic talent among taggers. But how much work is there if you only have 1 or 2 styles of graphics. The biggest problem would be to get the artist to study other ways or methods of art. To learn how to produce a saleable piece of work. Most of them do their kind of artwork because they are protesting something. They don't want to be tied down with rules and follow directions even though they would give everything if their art was recognized. They are so busy fighting for freedom they can't see how learning properly would free them. Would give them the tools for a better life, to possibly become a money making artist. But first they need to learn some discipline, to proportion their drawings properly, to work even when they may not want to because there is a deadline. Maybe even learn a new technique that would work better. Most of all they would have to be come accountable to someone else, to them a fate worse than death. Well kids, wait until you have a family to support or even just yourself. You can only go from friend to friend mooching or panhandling on the street which can be really dangerous. Then you have to grow up and why work at a low paying job you hate when with a little effort you may get a job you can enjoy using your talents.

Toxic words

Most of us perpetuate, without realizing it, thoughts and actions by treating our children and others as we were treated growing up. Not to say this is always a bad thing especially if we were raised in a nurturing family. We all have heard that abuse engenders abuse and how many of us as teens have said when I have children I will never do that to my kids. Only to find as a parent they do the same things mom and dad did. If this something is making them hold to a curfew, do chores, be responsible well great. These things need to be learned and followed. But the parent that uses toxic words or goes overboard on punishments, even if it is just timeouts, is fostering that use in their child and this we don't want to pass on to future generations.
Lets look at toxic words, just simple everyday words we all use but oh how they can poison a child's mind. Always...now stop and think about it, no one always anything. It's just, at that moment in time you think of how often they do something they were told not to do and forget how often they do right. Next is never...again no one never listens, never follows instructions, never does things right or whatever you are chastizing them for. Stop to think do you always or never do things?
How about but? Do you praise a child for something only to take it away by saying but? But why can't you do that all the time? But why didn't you do that the first time? Only a three letter word and it can do so much damage. And, yes, I nearly said but it can do so much damage.
And remember would'a, could'a, should'a, we often say these things about something we messed up and yes even then they are derogatory but to a child would, could and should can cut the self-esteem down so very badly.
Worst of all we don't mean to inflict damage to their ego but in frustration, anger or the heat of the moment it happens. We speak out without a thought of the message we are giving out to our children. And while we are on the subject think of your own ego. These same words are just as toxic to us and maybe if we learn to use other words in their place we won't be so quick to use them on the children.
When you want to say "You did great today but" why not say "I'm really proud of what you did today" and leave it at that. Or how about "that was great do you remember just how you did that?" This will tell them you are proud of them and reinforce to remember just what made it so great. As for yourself if you mess up and especially if its not the first time then tell yourself "I really need to slow down and do this the proper way next time because I really do know how to do it."

Fears & Defences

It is being much harder to write on the fears and defences found in handwriting than I expected. This is a very complex idea in the first place and each of us will react differently to the same situation based on our individual personalities. How we have learned to handle our fears, if we are insecure, if we are rebellious and enjoy challenging authority, if we are loners trusting few or none, and so many more factors.
I had hoped to find a way to use my trait directory's list of personality traits and then determined if each was a fear, defence, resistance, or escape. This idea won't work though because many can be placed in each category depending upon other factors in the writing.
So a fear of failure may make one person give up and do nothing much with their life, another turn to their mental abilities to hide themselves in work, while still another might fail at a half dozen things they try but put forth such energy they still find several to succeed at and become rich or famous. We are after all a mix of often conflicting traits and how we respond to them and the ones we use most distinguish just who and what we are.
While I won't give up on the idea of somehow trying to make this easier to understand it won't be any time soon.

Tombstone

Just came from the AHAF meeting where Lynn Monroy did another of her presentations on Tombstone, Az. So far she has introduced us to Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday, Ike Clanton and Johnny Ringo. She has done a lot of research on each of them, gotten samples of their handwriting and thrown in the history of Tombstone making for some interesting meetings.
Tonight we learned much about Sheriff John Behan and some time later we will go over Virgil and his wife. Wyatt was married when the sheriff traveled to San Francisco to bring to Tombstone Josephine (Sadie) Marcus. However, when they arrived and she met Wyatt they fell in love. It wasn't long before Wyatt left his common-law wife Mattie and Wyatt and Josephine lived openly together.
What a blow this must have been to Behan who was already in competition with the Earps over control of Tombstone. The sheriff was an elected official but Wyatt was a marshall, an appointed position. So Behan sided with the "Cowboys" who's voting power could keep him in office. Now understand at this time the Cowboys were not just men who worked on the ranches but a fairly lawless bunch who would rustle cattle, raid into Mexico or come into town and shoot it up when they got drunk. In fact, the former sheriff was shot trying to take the gun from a cowboy who was "shooting at the moon" while drunk.
Someone asked how Wyatt came to be the most know of the Earps when actually Virgil was the elder of the two but we could see from his writing that Wyatt was a quick thinking man who had a "my way or the highway" attitude. The Earps, Doc Holiday and Sheriff Behan were educated men who were intelligent, analytical and fast thinking. There the resemblance takes a turn into other directions. Doc, maybe because of his pain and definitely because he had no fear of dying often provoked others just because he wanted to do so. Sheriff Behan misused his authority not only because he could but also because he did not know how to properly handle it. Each of the Earps also had divergent styles and opinions which show up in their writing but we have not finished looking at all of them as yet.
All I can say is , "Well done Lynn, we look forward to the rest."