AMY KOUDELKA ART

A meandering high school student, I bounced from one experience to another, unaware that I was searching for something bigger than myself, searching for the Answer to my Why. I danced and sang Closer to Fine without realizing that I was going to the doctor, visiting the mountains, talking to the children and drinking from the fountain to find my answer. Through late night hours examining The Republic (mostly book VII), blasting Joan Jett, Eminem, Alabama, and The Replacements, visiting temples, mosques and firesides; laughing with family, friends and advising students through their college application process, My Why started to take shape.

 

Revealing that there is  more than one answer to my questions, my experiences have shaped my Why--and to succinctly (hard for me) summarize: My Why is ultimately to be a cheerleader and to help prepare my students, friends, family members and myself for the next challenge, stage, phase or event in our lives.

 

From my own experience, when I combine one-third cup of optimism, some dashes of humility, mixed in with some sprinkles of laughter--shaken with vigor and persistence, I have found my cup is not only full--but it spills over with joy and an ability to conquer whatever comes next. So, I drink it up, while I can. A cancer diagnosis was a slap in the face; the stinging slowly dissipated but the scars remind me to live, live, live. Life is short.

 

When I picture my Why, an image of a sunrise over an ocean appears, activating all my senses. Decartes said, I think therefore I am; but at times we must escape our thoughts and create to feel alive. Far from perfect, my paintings express the messy beauty and absurdity of  life.

 

My roles as wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend, college counselor, and adopting Socrates, “the more I know, the more I realize I know nothing” has shaped my work in advising  students to understand that there are many paths in life, some curvy and riddled with speed bumps, but we must push forward and encourage each other. 

 

 In my  dance through life singing,  “darkness has a hunger that's insatiable and lightness has a call that's hard to hear,” I stumble my way through my art and remind my students not to forget to dance, sing and laugh as they seek their own WHYs.