A Sweet Collaboration

by Traceena Lynch

Part 1: The Artist

If I had known that it would’ve been this difficult to be a successful artist, I would’ve just gone to med school like my mother said when I told her about my aspiration to become one. As Lily, (who is my best friend) came up to me, my thoughts of med school were put on hold. I have no clue how she does it but she speaks as if she’s on her last breath.

“Ok, so how was it? I can’t believe I’m taking pictures of cake today! CAKE! I absolutely love cake! Did I tell you they’re letting me try it afterwards? Also, did it go well?” she says all at once.

“You should really learn how to breathe in between sentences… also it didn’t go well. Again,” I reply with frustration. “Oh, I’m sorry… there’s always next time,” she says as she sits down, giving me a comforting smile. From the beginning she’s always had such a positive attitude to everything, she’s always been my lifeline through the years. I’m grateful to have her in my life, but I’m also envious. I wish I could go as far as she has in her passion. Lily is a successful food photographer, not surprising since the three main things she lives for are: food, photography, and me. Not sure about the exact order in which they fall, and I’m scared to know.

“You know, I should’ve stuck to med school, at least I would’ve had a steady income and salary,” I said, breaking the silence between us. She makes a disgusted face “But it has horrible schedules and it wouldn’t make you happy, Rosalina. I never understood how people can commit to a job for the rest of their lives that they absolutely hate.”

“Money would make me happy,” I reply jokingly. “If that was a joke then it was a horrible one, and if you think that MONEY of all things would make you happy, then you don’t understand the concept of true happiness,” she says with an unimpressed look on her face. I finally give a rebuttal after processing her words, “Unfortunately that’s how some people end up, Lily. It’s sad but it’s the hard truth about life. Plus, not everyone is as lucky as you.”

I wouldn’t say that Lily’s spoiled but she’s always had the support of others growing up. Unfortunately, not everyone has that. I know for sure I didn’t. Hell, I only made it this far because of me, not because of others. My parents refused to pay for college because it wasn’t what they wanted, so I had to figure it out on my own. Lily had everything paid for, everything handled and handed to her. She’s always had a support system that helped her grow.

After my statement the back and forth stopped and good thing it did, for I was starting to get a headache. We’ve had these types of disputes every time my work fails and after every time my love for my passion slowly dies even more.

“I know just what will cheer you up!” she says. “And what’s that?” I ask. “Come to my next job with me!” we say in unison, her voice sounding a lot more enthusiastic than mine.

“I’m only agreeing because I don’t feel like sulking back at our apartment,” I say, giving her the answer that will make her jump for joy. She cheers because we’ll finally spend more time together. As she speaks about whoever this person is and what they do, I zoned out. I can’t help but think and get nervous about what my future is gonna look like, and if I made the wrong decision of leaving medicine for art.

To be continued...

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