Crowns of Courage: How Armless Art Came to Be
(11/3/21)
Armless Art recently celebrated two years of existence, and so, I have been reflecting on how Armless Art came to be. Memories of tough decisions, tears, and yearning for brighter days come quickly to mind. So, here we are, a few years after those tumultuous times; A time where I can finally sit and reflect on my path to becoming Armless Art.
Art has always been there for me. Being born without arms and raised in a small area, opportunities were few and far between for individuals like me, so I found a sense of belonging in art. When ridicule bogged me down, art lifted me up. When obstacles presented themselves, art showed me a path through them. It would be absurd of me to not put my energy into something that has provided so much for me.
Noah, age 9, winning elementary artist of the year. 4 June, 2010.
I had just finished my first year of undergrad at a fancy Catholic university when I had completely lost my sense of control in life. The spring semester of that year offered thoughts of self-pity and despair over things that, when looked back on, were totally meaningless. Despite this, I still made the impulsive decision to drop out of my program, and pursue life in the South with family. I told myself that it would all come together as soon as I changed my location.
Man, was I wrong.
I thought I knew it all, then, when it was time to put it together, everything fell apart, and I had no clue what to do. If I had listened to an ounce of advice along the way, or had acted out of anything other than emotion, perhaps I would not have found myself at the foot of that twin mattress on the floor, on the morning of September 10, 2019. It was that moment in which I realized I knew what to do all along. I had known all my life what I should have been doing, but my vision had been so blurred by the chaos of my life. That morning, while babysitting my sweet niece, Serenity, I realized that I was an artist and I had to create. By that evening, I created social media pages for my artwork, began uploading my portfolio to each, and began work on a debut piece. Fast forward a few weeks to September 27, 2019, Armless Art’s debut piece “I’ll Follow the Sun” sold to a patron.
"I'll Follow the Sun" Oil pastel on textured paper. 27 September, 2019.
Soon thereafter, I decided I was fed up with life in the South, prioritized myself, and found myself on a United flight back to Pennsylvania - home. It was a hard decision to make, but if I had not made it, I am not sure if I would even be here to tell the story.
I’ll never forget that flight home. A very nice United representative gave me a pep talk at the ticket counter, and a kind gentleman purchased my breakfast. So far, all signs pointed to the thought of ‘Yes, Noah. You’ve made the right choice. Keep going.’ It was on that flight home where I would mentally plan my next few steps. I thought about going back to school at a local community college, and decided to apply. I also made my art more of a priority with my free time, and posted piece after piece to social media.
A few months and a couple holidays later, I found myself in a new city with a friend from high school, walking a mile to school in knee-deep snow, and getting my first taste of the real world. It was now time to put everything I had learned about living independently and put it to the test.
Now, just a few weeks into this new lifestyle, I received an email from a producer from Barcroft Media. As it turned out, it was Born Different, and they wanted to do a short video of me, which would document a day of life in my shoes as a student and artist without arms. The thought of putting myself so publicly out there was frightening, but, again, I channeled the same courage that carried me through so many obstacles and decided to pursue it, for myself, and to help Armless Art grow and flourish.
Preparing to film Born Different. 11 February, 2020.
Armless Teen Does EVERYTHING With His Feet | BORN DIFFERENT
The process was very quick and exciting, but was very short lived, as days later, lockdown precautions were beginning. The pandemic was beginning just as this new phase of life had begun. I was on my own, doing my thing for about two months, then, suddenly, I was right back to the drawing board, meditating on that courage as I pushed through this new way of life, and getting through, now, online school.
Flash forward back to now, about a year and a half and a degree later, I have everything in my life that, at one point in my life, I had so longed for. As a child I would dream of a healthy, normal life. No surgeries or turmoil, just bounties of love and fun. I have that now, not because I am special or just “me.” The truth is in courage.
Yes, courage. The same courage that allowed me to keep going, at the highest highs and the lowest lows, was always in me, just as it is in any of you that may be reading this. Author Ryan Holiday writes in his new bestseller titled, “Courage is Calling: Fortune Favors the Brave,”
“But courage - the first of the four cardinal virtues - is not a precious stone. It is not a diamond, a product of some billion-year, timeless process… No. It is something much simpler. It is renewable. It’s there in each of us, everywhere. It is something we are all capable of in a moment’s notice. In matters big and small. Physical. Moral.”
Find that courage in you. Listen to it and allow it to carry you through life’s offering’s. I can do it. You can do it. Anyone can do it. I believe in all of us!
I am very excited to finally be pursuing a website and blog. I hope to post a new blogpost about twice a month, in addition to new artwork. Please, check back for updates! Thank you! 👣
