Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth

Last week I had the chance to visit the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth to check out a brand new exhibit featuring work from Japanese artist Takashi Murakami. The exhibit is called The Octopus Eats Its Own Leg and it will be on display until mid September. I was very excited to visit and check out this exhibit because this was an artist that I was familiar with. When I visited The Broad in Los Angeles, not only was his artwork featured in the entrance gallery, but it was a HUGE piece. It was displayed continuously on three walls! So when I realized a museum so close to me was featuring his work in its very own exhibition, I had to go as soon as I had the chance.

Takashi Murakami's work is easily recognized from his collaborations with Kanye West. If you're a fan of Kanye West, you've seen his art work before. His most recent collaboration with Kanye West is through his artwork for the album cover of "Kids See Ghosts" a collaboration album from West and Kid Cudi. What interested me most about Takashi Murakami is his colorful artwork. As you visit the museum and read more about each individual piece you get to know more about him and read about the history behind some of his lesser known pieces. One of my favorite things about the exhibit was by far the entrance. As you're walking up the stairs to enter the main gallery, you are engulfed in a kaleidoscope of color that almost makes you feel like you're being eaten by an octopus. I've been to a few different art exhibitions and this exhibit had me in awe throughout the entire time.

Quick Life Update

    Hey everyone, it's June and this year has been filled with so much growth for me! This post is meant to get you up to speed with where I am currently, what I've been up to the past month and a half where I didn't post, and the direction that I'm headed from here. This entire year has been incredibly eye opening for me and I really feel like I'm becoming the best version of myself. We all go through phases and learn about who we are individually, and I think I've finally been able to figure that out-and let me tell you, it's SO exciting.
    First we can talk about the past few weeks before we dive into the personal growth journey. I finished my 19 hour semester with solid A's and B's. I was a little disappointed in myself because I wanted to do better than I did, but because there isn't very much I can do about it now, it isn't really worth talking about. After finishing the spring semester, I registered for a summer class (Developmental Psychology) and y'all, it's SO much more work than I anticipated! I'm a little stressed about it, but it's only a five week course so my nightmare will be short lived-ish. Aside from school and just the incredible amount of pressure I put myself under to finish and graduate, life has been absolutely amazing for me. The main reason why I think things have been so great is because I've changed my mindset and my entire outlook on life.
    Although my personal growth journey sort of began in 2017, I believe that I truly worked at it more in 2018 and committed to the person I wanted to be this year. One of the biggest things that I felt changed me as an individual was when I decided to make amends with those who hurt me. I had been wanting to reach out to these people for a while, but always put it off because of pride and the general distaste of admitting your faults. It's a very tough pill to swallow, but I found that it was entirely worth it. My experiences with apologizing and making amends really made me realize that I'm in control of my life because I am the one making the choices that affect me.  When I made the choice to reach out to those who hurt me, and those I hurt, I chose to let go. I had been harboring a ton of resentment and it really took a toll on what is most important to me- ME!! So, I did it. I had a conversation with each individual that I felt terms were a little less than good with, and made an effort to put my best foot forward. In doing so, I allowed myself the chance to forgive them as well as forgive myself for behaving in a manner that I was not proud of. Whether or not these people cared to hear what I had to say, I needed to say it, and bury the negative energy in order to truly step forward in the direction that I wanted to head toward. It wasn't like I was in a position where I needed their forgiveness in order to feel at peace, but rather what I was looking for was my own forgiveness- for stepping out of character and being someone I was not.
    So after having all these conversations, I genuinely feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I can honestly sit here and say that I'm proud of myself for the decisions I've made this year and all the progress I've made because of it. I've always had the tendency to be some what of a perfectionist and have always been incredibly critical and hard on myself in every possible aspect of my life. I didn't really see a problem with that because I always believed it helped me become a better person. I did however realize that this was unrealistic and that I'd never be able to achieve this goal of being "perfect". I still struggle with being really hard on myself now, but I don't think the degree of it is the same as it was before. It's important to remember that you can't always be right, and when you're wrong, it's even more important to own up to it and acknowledge it. This post ended up being way longer than I intended, but the main point is that life is full of mistakes. Literally full of them, there is not a single person on this planet that hasn't messed up just once in their life. What's important is that you learn from these mistakes and work towards not repeating them. My good friend Ronald stated in his twitter bio that he studies "what they call the University of Life" and I just finished my first semester there and it feels good. Life is about making the best of every day and that is centered around being the best you can be! I realized that everything else just follows naturally as a consequence of good health in all forms-physical, mental, spiritual etc.

    Sending each and every one of you love and good, positive energy to work towards bettering yourself everyday. It requires a lot of work, but the best investment is always going to be towards yourself. Cheers to a life filled with love from me and the loml. Thanks for reading, Quynhthy.