My name is Maggie Helland and I am a Senior at Cornell College. As a Digital and Multimedia Writing major, I have been very intrigued by different mediums of art, including jewelry making. The Cornell College community allows for creativity to shine, and they love to showcase art made in the community and its artists. One of my favorite art festivals to attend in Mount Vernon is the Lincoln Highway Arts Festival.
I absolutely loved attending the Lincoln Highway Arts Festival this year. I have been in years past and I always love to see the beautiful works of art that people in the community have created, and I love to hear the stories behind their works.
A couple of years ago, there was a woman selling her jewelry at the festival. Her name is Connie Rodgers and her pieces immediately caught my eye. I had never seen anything like it before and it struck me, leaving me with a feeling that I needed to have one of her pieces. I spoke with her and she told me of her travels all around the world to find pieces of metal and glass that she then uses to make her jewelry pieces.
She had a certain whimsy and way about her that was very much alive in her art. I was lucky enough that she was back again this year and I finally bought one of her necklaces. As someone who would not consider myself an art connoisseur, finding pieces that speak to me deeply is one of the greatest feelings. I am so happy to now have one of her pieces, and I am proud to wear her beautiful creation.
Looking ahead towards a career path, this festival always reminds me that people really are out here living their dreams and making art that means so much to them. Sometimes, I am weighed down by the feeling of needing to have everything figured out, but when I walk through the booths and hear the artists talk about their journeys, I am reminded that life doesn’t have to move in a straight path.
I think about my own goals, how I want to become a flight attendant and see the world, but also how much I would love to write about those travels, maybe through a blog or even a book one day. The festival reassures me that I don’t have to choose just one path or confine myself to a single identity. Creativity can be something I carry with me, no matter where I am or what my “day job” looks like.
Even if I am not creating traditional art, I can still live a creative life through storytelling, through capturing moments in writing, and through the way I approach the world. The artists at the festival inspire me to believe that it is possible to build a life where I can do both: pursue a career that fulfills me while still making space for the things that light me up creatively. It’s acomforting reminder that passion and practicality don’t have to be separate, and that my future can hold more than one dream at a time.
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