Poem: "A Gentle Whisper"
This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It fills the "Worth It" square in my 6-1-20 card for the Cottoncandy Bingo fest. It has been sponsored by a pool with ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ng_moonmoth. This poem belongs to the series Arts and Crafts America.
"A Gentle Whisper"
[1961-2011]
Robert Ross did well in
the military, but he hated it.
He started out serving as
a medical records technician,
but promotions led him into areas
where he had to be tough and mean.
He loathed being the guy who made
people scrub the latrine, the guy who
nagged them to make their beds,
the guy who screamed at them
for being five minutes late to work.
He loved the Alaskan scenery,
though, the ragged mountains
and snow-swept valleys and
deep sapphire lakes.
Robert found a refuge
in painting, and first used
his quick-painting technique
to create art during work breaks.
When he left the military, he
decided that he would never
yell or raise his voice again.
"Be so very light," Robert urged
his art students. "Be a gentle whisper."
His popularity grew, and in 1983 he
began hosting a television show
called The Joy of Painting.
He spoke with confidence and
encouraged everyone to paint.
"I think there’s an artist hidden
at the bottom of every single one
of us," Robert said to his fans,
and they believed him.
He was credited with
the rising popularity of
alla prima painting.
Whenever someone asked
if his military career had been
a mistake, Robert replied,
"We don’t make mistakes.
We just have happy accidents."
Yet he couldn't forget that he
had joined the military in hopes
of making the world a better place.
It hadn't worked out that way, but
he still held that desire deep down.
So when The Joy of Painting
concluded in 1994, Robert
let friends talk him into
joining local politics.
He became quite popular
for his gentle whisper and way
of painting a picture with words.
"It's not hard," Robert said.
"Politics is like art. All you need
are a few tools, a little instruction,
and a clear vision in your mind."
His popularity grew, and he served
on the 105th Congress from 1997-1999
in the United States House of Representatives.
After that, his growing crowd of devotees
began urging him to run for President.
"Oh, I couldn't," Robert said.
"Who would vote for me?"
"Everyone who hears
you speak," they insisted,
and eventually he gave in.
Robert Ross made for
a very interesting race.
Debating him was like
trying to chop water.
He just flowed out of
the way, then flowed back ...
... and like water, like rain,
like ocean waves, everyone
wanted to listen to Robert Ross.
He talked about environmentalism:
"If we’re going to have animals around,
we all have to be concerned about
them and take care of them."
He talked about queer
and transgender people:
"It's your life and your identity.
However you think it should be,
that’s exactly how it should be."
He talked about welfare and
the importance of getting people
off handouts and back on the workforce:
"Helping people is like painting. If you do
too much, it’s going to lose its effectiveness."
As Robert traveled around the nation
talking to voters, he also observed
the scenery, and in hotels he created
the paintings that would become
the series America the Beautiful.
It was grueling work to visit
so many places so fast,
but he persevered, and
in every state people
flocked to hear him.
On Election Day, Robert
advised his adoring fans,
"Here’s your bravery test!"
They passed.
Even after his election,
Robert made time to paint
and to talk to people.
He even remodeled
the study adjacent to
the Oval Office into
a private art studio.
The Oval Office itself
overlooked the Rose Garden,
which Robert often painted.
Once a week, he set aside
half an hour for a Studio Chat,
during which he discussed
current issues while painting
a peaceful nature scene.
He talked about racism
while blending reflections
on the surface of a lake:
"See how it fades right
into nothing. That’s just
what you’re looking for."
He talked about accessibility
while silhouetting tree trunks
against a multicolored sunset:
"That’s where the crows will sit.
But we’ll have to put an elevator
to put them up there because
they can’t fly, but they don’t
know that, so they still try."
He talked about diplomacy
while layering autumn bushes
along the banks of a stream:
"You can have anything you
want in the world -- once
you help everyone around
you get what they want."
In all things, Robert encouraged
everyone to follow their hearts.
"It’s so important to do something
every day that will make you happy,"
he said as he waved his two-inch brush
and brought a world into being.
Sometimes people asked him
if it was worth it, giving up
a full-time painting career
to practice politics.
"I wouldn't have made
America the Beautiful
without it. I wouldn't have
made a lot of my current friends.
I wouldn't have been able to help
with a lot of very hard problems,"
he said. "So yeah, it's worth it."
Robert handled the housing crisis
by directing the government to buy
empty houses, where taxpayers
could stay for a length of time
based on need, neatly avoiding
"not in my backyard" arguments
against the homeless shelters,
housing projects, and such.
He encouraged the growth of
the Internet with subsidies
to connect every town and
home, so that everyone
could learn things online.
He supported the decolonization
of Montenegro, Kosovo, and
other newly independent nations,
visiting them to paint murals
alongside their leaders.
None of this was easy,
but all of it was worth it.
In January of 2009,
Robert Ross announced
his retirement from public office.
Instead, he began a new career
in peacemaking, for which he
traveled all around the world
speaking to troubled countries.
As usual, he used painting as
a way to reach out to people.
He brokered a deal for
peace in the Middle East:
"Isn’t it fantastic that you can
change your mind and create
all these happy things?"
He helped the fragments
of former Soviet Georgia
to figure out new alliances
through some trial and error:
"Anytime you learn, you gain."
He negotiated with the nations
of the Nile to share its bounty by
searching for subjects of agreement:
"Water’s like me. It’s lazy. Boy, it always
looks for the easiest way to do things."
So Robert Ross became one of
the most influential former Presidents
of all time, and he did at least as much
good after leaving office as in it.
"Where do you get all your energy?"
the reporters asked him in interviews.
"Oh, everywhere," Robert said.
"It’s life. It’s interesting. It’s fun."
He painted everything under the sun,
he made peace, and he did all of it
without ever raising his voice.
He was a gentle whisper
that changed the world.
* * *
Notes:
"Be so very light. Be a gentle whisper."
― Bob Ross
"I think there’s an artist hidden at the bottom of every single one of us."
― Bob Ross
"We don’t make mistakes. We just have happy accidents."
― Bob Ross
"All you need to paint is a few tools, a little instruction, and a vision in your mind."
― Bob Ross
"If we’re going to have animals around we all have to be concerned about them and take care of them."
― Bob Ross
"However you think it should be, that’s exactly how it should be."
― Bob Ross
"If you do too much, it’s going to lose its effectiveness."
― Bob Ross
“Here’s your bravery test!”
― Bob Ross
“See how it fades right into nothing. That’s just what you’re looking for.”
― Bob Ross
“That’s where the crows will sit. But we’ll have to put an elevator to put them up there because they can’t fly, but they don’t know that, so they still try.”
― Bob Ross
“You can have anything you want in the world — once you help everyone around you get what they want.”
― Bob Ross
“It’s so important to do something every day that will make you happy.”
― Bob Ross
“Isn’t it fantastic that you can change your mind and create all these happy things?”
― Bob Ross
"Anytime you learn, you gain."
― Bob Ross
"Water’s like me. It’s lazy. Boy, it always looks for the easiest way to do things."
― Bob Ross
"It’s life. It’s interesting. It’s fun."
― Bob Ross
Robert Ross joined the Air Force in 1961 and served for 20 years.
During his service, he took an art class and began painting nature scenes. Later he ran the television show The Joy of Painting from January 11, 1983 to May 17, 1994. He worked in the alla prima or "wet-on-wet" style of oil painting.
Read about the House of Representatives and the 105th Congress (1997–1999).
Here is a list of U.S. Presidents.
Presidential Term 43
January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
This floor plan shows the west wing of the White House.
A housing crisis and recession in 2007 causes many challenges.
Read about the progression of decolonization and independence.
ng_moonmoth. This poem belongs to the series Arts and Crafts America."A Gentle Whisper"
[1961-2011]
Robert Ross did well in
the military, but he hated it.
He started out serving as
a medical records technician,
but promotions led him into areas
where he had to be tough and mean.
He loathed being the guy who made
people scrub the latrine, the guy who
nagged them to make their beds,
the guy who screamed at them
for being five minutes late to work.
He loved the Alaskan scenery,
though, the ragged mountains
and snow-swept valleys and
deep sapphire lakes.
Robert found a refuge
in painting, and first used
his quick-painting technique
to create art during work breaks.
When he left the military, he
decided that he would never
yell or raise his voice again.
"Be so very light," Robert urged
his art students. "Be a gentle whisper."
His popularity grew, and in 1983 he
began hosting a television show
called The Joy of Painting.
He spoke with confidence and
encouraged everyone to paint.
"I think there’s an artist hidden
at the bottom of every single one
of us," Robert said to his fans,
and they believed him.
He was credited with
the rising popularity of
alla prima painting.
Whenever someone asked
if his military career had been
a mistake, Robert replied,
"We don’t make mistakes.
We just have happy accidents."
Yet he couldn't forget that he
had joined the military in hopes
of making the world a better place.
It hadn't worked out that way, but
he still held that desire deep down.
So when The Joy of Painting
concluded in 1994, Robert
let friends talk him into
joining local politics.
He became quite popular
for his gentle whisper and way
of painting a picture with words.
"It's not hard," Robert said.
"Politics is like art. All you need
are a few tools, a little instruction,
and a clear vision in your mind."
His popularity grew, and he served
on the 105th Congress from 1997-1999
in the United States House of Representatives.
After that, his growing crowd of devotees
began urging him to run for President.
"Oh, I couldn't," Robert said.
"Who would vote for me?"
"Everyone who hears
you speak," they insisted,
and eventually he gave in.
Robert Ross made for
a very interesting race.
Debating him was like
trying to chop water.
He just flowed out of
the way, then flowed back ...
... and like water, like rain,
like ocean waves, everyone
wanted to listen to Robert Ross.
He talked about environmentalism:
"If we’re going to have animals around,
we all have to be concerned about
them and take care of them."
He talked about queer
and transgender people:
"It's your life and your identity.
However you think it should be,
that’s exactly how it should be."
He talked about welfare and
the importance of getting people
off handouts and back on the workforce:
"Helping people is like painting. If you do
too much, it’s going to lose its effectiveness."
As Robert traveled around the nation
talking to voters, he also observed
the scenery, and in hotels he created
the paintings that would become
the series America the Beautiful.
It was grueling work to visit
so many places so fast,
but he persevered, and
in every state people
flocked to hear him.
On Election Day, Robert
advised his adoring fans,
"Here’s your bravery test!"
They passed.
Even after his election,
Robert made time to paint
and to talk to people.
He even remodeled
the study adjacent to
the Oval Office into
a private art studio.
The Oval Office itself
overlooked the Rose Garden,
which Robert often painted.
Once a week, he set aside
half an hour for a Studio Chat,
during which he discussed
current issues while painting
a peaceful nature scene.
He talked about racism
while blending reflections
on the surface of a lake:
"See how it fades right
into nothing. That’s just
what you’re looking for."
He talked about accessibility
while silhouetting tree trunks
against a multicolored sunset:
"That’s where the crows will sit.
But we’ll have to put an elevator
to put them up there because
they can’t fly, but they don’t
know that, so they still try."
He talked about diplomacy
while layering autumn bushes
along the banks of a stream:
"You can have anything you
want in the world -- once
you help everyone around
you get what they want."
In all things, Robert encouraged
everyone to follow their hearts.
"It’s so important to do something
every day that will make you happy,"
he said as he waved his two-inch brush
and brought a world into being.
Sometimes people asked him
if it was worth it, giving up
a full-time painting career
to practice politics.
"I wouldn't have made
America the Beautiful
without it. I wouldn't have
made a lot of my current friends.
I wouldn't have been able to help
with a lot of very hard problems,"
he said. "So yeah, it's worth it."
Robert handled the housing crisis
by directing the government to buy
empty houses, where taxpayers
could stay for a length of time
based on need, neatly avoiding
"not in my backyard" arguments
against the homeless shelters,
housing projects, and such.
He encouraged the growth of
the Internet with subsidies
to connect every town and
home, so that everyone
could learn things online.
He supported the decolonization
of Montenegro, Kosovo, and
other newly independent nations,
visiting them to paint murals
alongside their leaders.
None of this was easy,
but all of it was worth it.
In January of 2009,
Robert Ross announced
his retirement from public office.
Instead, he began a new career
in peacemaking, for which he
traveled all around the world
speaking to troubled countries.
As usual, he used painting as
a way to reach out to people.
He brokered a deal for
peace in the Middle East:
"Isn’t it fantastic that you can
change your mind and create
all these happy things?"
He helped the fragments
of former Soviet Georgia
to figure out new alliances
through some trial and error:
"Anytime you learn, you gain."
He negotiated with the nations
of the Nile to share its bounty by
searching for subjects of agreement:
"Water’s like me. It’s lazy. Boy, it always
looks for the easiest way to do things."
So Robert Ross became one of
the most influential former Presidents
of all time, and he did at least as much
good after leaving office as in it.
"Where do you get all your energy?"
the reporters asked him in interviews.
"Oh, everywhere," Robert said.
"It’s life. It’s interesting. It’s fun."
He painted everything under the sun,
he made peace, and he did all of it
without ever raising his voice.
He was a gentle whisper
that changed the world.
* * *
Notes:
"Be so very light. Be a gentle whisper."
― Bob Ross
"I think there’s an artist hidden at the bottom of every single one of us."
― Bob Ross
"We don’t make mistakes. We just have happy accidents."
― Bob Ross
"All you need to paint is a few tools, a little instruction, and a vision in your mind."
― Bob Ross
"If we’re going to have animals around we all have to be concerned about them and take care of them."
― Bob Ross
"However you think it should be, that’s exactly how it should be."
― Bob Ross
"If you do too much, it’s going to lose its effectiveness."
― Bob Ross
“Here’s your bravery test!”
― Bob Ross
“See how it fades right into nothing. That’s just what you’re looking for.”
― Bob Ross
“That’s where the crows will sit. But we’ll have to put an elevator to put them up there because they can’t fly, but they don’t know that, so they still try.”
― Bob Ross
“You can have anything you want in the world — once you help everyone around you get what they want.”
― Bob Ross
“It’s so important to do something every day that will make you happy.”
― Bob Ross
“Isn’t it fantastic that you can change your mind and create all these happy things?”
― Bob Ross
"Anytime you learn, you gain."
― Bob Ross
"Water’s like me. It’s lazy. Boy, it always looks for the easiest way to do things."
― Bob Ross
"It’s life. It’s interesting. It’s fun."
― Bob Ross
Robert Ross joined the Air Force in 1961 and served for 20 years.
During his service, he took an art class and began painting nature scenes. Later he ran the television show The Joy of Painting from January 11, 1983 to May 17, 1994. He worked in the alla prima or "wet-on-wet" style of oil painting.
Read about the House of Representatives and the 105th Congress (1997–1999).
Here is a list of U.S. Presidents.
Presidential Term 43
January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
This floor plan shows the west wing of the White House.
A housing crisis and recession in 2007 causes many challenges.
Read about the progression of decolonization and independence.