January 20, 2009

"Obama" by Lea Keohane 2009. All Rights Reserved.

Growing up, much as I got along with nearly all of my teachers, they still did not particularly appreciate my habit of sketching while I listened to their lectures. Like it or not, however, putting my pen to paper and keeping the creative half of my brain entertained helped me focus on their words, processing them in my own way. In an instance or two, it literally kept me from falling asleep during an especially...erm...boring lecture. I still have some of my high school and college notebooks--while I no longer need the lecture notes that they contain, I find myself unable to part with the doodles in the margins.

It's a habit that I still have, apparently. I often find myself sketching while watching tv or talking on the phone. Or, in this case, while I watch/listen to one of the most historically important speeces of my lifetime, the inaugural address of President Obama. As I listened, I continually wiped the tears from my eyes, and I felt the need to capture the moment. So I grabbed my markers and sketchbook, and the above drawing is what I came up with during the remainder of his speech.