P.A.C.E. ^© – Positive Attitudes Change Everything ^©,
a statement that has come to inspire these two artists in their daily lives and helped them persevere to create and sell their art.   

JIM FREDERICK

It all started with me during a really tough time in my life.  I had almost passed away in 1997 and my partner of six years died that Thanksgiving.  I had many close friends that blest my life and made sure I was loved and nurtured, but the “alone” feeling swallowed me whole.  For a little over 2 years I was doing what I thought I needed to do to “survive”.  I focused on my loss, the unknowingness of my future and everything I felt I lacked.  Bottom line is, I was scared of the future.  Up until this point my future looked to be cut short.   Now, I was on another path and after years of “doing” I tried to feel and be.  Turning from a “human doing” to a “human being” sounds simple enough, but listening to your heart takes time and patience.  My motto in 1999 was follow your heart, the rest will follow.  And I did.   After much tug of wars of doing and being I met myself half way and gave myself permission to paint on canvas.  Every time I started to doubt my ability I would argue back that I liked how painting made me feel.  I was not concerned about if I was any good or not—I just wanted to feel good.

     P.A.C.E. started in 2000 when my motto was “positive attitudes change everything”.  I woke up every morning saying those words and every time I got scared or depressed I said that phrase.  P.A.C.E. has evolved for me as a continuing lesson on life.  The only thing we can control in this life is our attitude, and yet so many of us neglect it.  P.A.C.E. is about following your heart and letting the rest take care of itself. It is about being true to yourself and finding your passion. Again the concept is simple. Finding your truth, living your truth and sharing your blessings.

     Don’t think you have a truth to share? Don’t think your life has blessings? Start there. Dive into your heart and listen to the whispers.  We all have a story. It is our choice if we want it to be fiction of non-fiction.  Call to action—we want to hear your stories.

William H. Miller

I have always thought of myself as an optimist.  Then a series of events made me wonder. I lost my job, my health took a turn for the worst, and I felt depressed.  But then I met Jim Frederick and he shared his motto—” positive attitudes change everything”.

     We talked about art, what makes an artist and what could we do to be successful as artists. We both agreed that a positive outlook is needed in art as well as in life. We began on our adventures to be artists, Jim, had a year head start, and that proved to be helpful in judging my own progress. We set goals.  We lifted each other up with positive feedback. Even when the goings got tough, we realized that if we took a positive approach, if we changed our attitudes to always see the positive of a situation that things did change. Not only did they change they changed for the   better and usually opened some unexpected opportunity. Rather than be negative about a situation, we would try and learn from it. It was this learning that helped us to realize that our own positive attitudes were actually helping us reach and achieve our goals as artists.

     So many artists are afraid to be themselves and put their work out there.  By putting our art out into the universe—we are causing change. I remember the change in myself when I first told someone “I am an artist.”  I am excited now knowing that not only can my art help change the world, but my own attitude can change everything around me. For me, P.A.CE. is a way of life.  I encourage anyone to join us in using it to change your destiny.