A New Talent Discovered Late In Life.
By Jabo
@jaboUK (64354)
United Kingdom
June 18, 2017 2:57pm CST
My mother was in her 60s before she took up painting. She just got interested and joined an art class, and there were people of all ages there.
We girls were all married and living in different parts of the country, so we thought it was a harmless pastime to keep her occupied.
Then we had to sit up and take notice when she started producing paintings that were fairly good by any standards. She did landscapes, Spanish dancers, and a beautiful painting of the Lady of Shallot. My daughter has that on her wall to this day.
She then turned to portraits, which are notoriously difficult, and proved to be good at capturing likenesses.
The picture above shows her paintings of my children when my son was about 8 and my daughter 6. They looked just like that.
My mother has been gone these many years, but she has left little parts of herself in the many paintings that my sisters, and our children, will always cherish.
I also discovered new interests late in life - gardening and poetry. Have you found any new talents as you've got older?
69 people like this
71 responses
@RasmaSandra (80635)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
18 Jun 17
Your mom certainly had artistic talent. Good for her and glad you have the paintings to remember. No new talents here but I feel my writing has improved and my muses have gotten sharper for my poetry.
5 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
@RasmaSandra It's really lovely to have my mother's paintings, she put so much into them. That's good that you are improving your already existing talent.
3 people like this
@Juliaacv (51458)
• Canada
19 Jun 17
@jaboUK I knew that the computing and poetry were new-found talents, but I wasn't aware that your gardening was also. You've really unearthed some hidden treasures here haven't you! I'm hoping the same for my husband, he doesn't really have any hobbies because he's always worked full time, and I do have a concern about him retiring without a hobby, that is never a healthy thing to do.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
19 Jun 17
@Juliaacv Yes, it's good if you can have an interesting hobby, I hope your husband finds something.
I didn't start gardening until I was in my 60s - my mother was a passionate gardener and would have been amazed, as I'd never shown any interest before. Mind you I had a physically tiring job working with horses, and was happy to put my feet up when I got home, so gardening was never on my radar.
1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45494)
• United States
18 Jun 17
Yes..I have a new talent for loving each day!lol. Those paintings are great!!!
3 people like this
@marlina (154131)
• Canada
19 Jun 17
@AbbyGreenhill, I have that talent too for loving each day, except the ones when I am "out of circulation".
2 people like this
@AbbyGreenhill (45494)
• United States
19 Jun 17
@jaboUK they really come to life.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
@AbbyGreenhill Loving each day is a good talent to have
. Thanks for liking the paintings.
. Thanks for liking the paintings.1 person likes this
@GreatMartin (23672)
• Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
18 Jun 17
Is relaxing considered a talent? What about blogging?
Seriously when I was 62 I started raising budgies, finches and cockatiels--well not that I had much to do with it except keep the parents healhty! :O)
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
@GreatMartin NO - relaxing and blogging don't count!! But raising birds does
. I remember you writing about them, and how sad you were when you couldn't keep them any more.
. I remember you writing about them, and how sad you were when you couldn't keep them any more.
@garymarsh6 (23404)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
I have yet to retire Janet but I have many plans for the future. Just a few more years and I will be joining you! I doubt painting will be my forte unless you like the style of Picasso or Lowry 
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
@garymarsh6 Lol - I'm not fond of Picasso, but do like Lowry! I've never actually tried painting myself, but my elder sister has taken it up in her old age, just like Mum.
2 people like this
@garymarsh6 (23404)
• United Kingdom
18 Jun 17
@jaboUK Next time you are in Malaga pop into the Picasso museum you might be quite surprised. It changed my mind about him!
2 people like this
@LindaCPearson (2240)
• United States
18 Jun 17
Wow! She definitely did have talent! How wonderful she was able to discover it and enjoy it, no matter how late.
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61102)
• United States
21 Jun 17
lol I appear to be talentless in my later years, But I have enough to keep me busy with the things I do so I have not tried to find a talent, I do know I have no artistic talent. lol Those are amazing portraits, you mother was indeed very talented. One has to wonder what she might have produced had her talent been nurtured from an early age.
1 person likes this
@BelleStarr (61102)
• United States
21 Jun 17
@jaboUK Well thank you, I have been writing since I was a wee one so it is a part of who I am. You and your limericks , now that is a talent lol
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
21 Jun 17
@BelleStarr Don't be daft - you aren't talentless, your writing alone is witness to that. Just because you haven't found any new talents just means you had them all along
As you say, if Mum's talents had surfaced earlier who knows what she could have achieved.
- you aren't talentless, your writing alone is witness to that. Just because you haven't found any new talents just means you had them all along
As you say, if Mum's talents had surfaced earlier who knows what she could have achieved.1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
21 Jun 17
@BelleStarr I never even attempted a limerick until I was 74
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (471991)
• Switzerland
19 Jun 17
Your mother was incredibly talented, because portraits are very difficult. I am thinking if I found any new talents aging. I have always liked painting, but now I have found that I also like pottery making. There is a special satisfaction in creating objects that you can use.
1 person likes this
@nanette64 (20364)
• Fairfield, Texas
25 Jun 17
Your Mom was one heck of a good painter @jaboUK . Those are beautifully done. My Mom played guitar and sang country for the Veterans at hospitals. It wasn't until I was 51 that I took up the guitar and learned to self play.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
25 Jun 17
@nanette64 Thanks for being so kind about my mum's paintings Nanette. So you discovered a new talent yourself, even though 51 is not that old!
1 person likes this
@nanette64 (20364)
• Fairfield, Texas
26 Jun 17
@jaboUK I really did it to tick off my husband. He's the one who bought the guitar and took lessons. When he came home one day I was playing the guitar better than he did taking lessons. He was mad and never played the guitar again. LOL.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (130213)
• Israel
19 Jun 17
That is great. I am glad that your mother before she passed away discovered what she was capable of. That is a good question. I never had an encouragement while I was growing up so took boring jobs and then came to Israel and I discovered one can reinvent themselves. I learned computer graphics and even went out and made it into a business. Now, I am not so sure about it and still love to create things on the cover, but, if looking for extra ways to make more money so can relax a little and not have to work so hard. What is so great is discovering something inside of you that you did not know you could do later in life and enjoying doing it and then you discovering something inside of you too.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
19 Jun 17
@Hannihar Thank you for your detailed comment. It's good that you were able to reinvent yourself, and if you did it once you can do it again. I'm afraid it's a fact that most of us have to work when we are younger in order to be able to enjoy our later years.
@Hannihar (130213)
• Israel
20 Jun 17
@jaboUK
The sad thing is I believe I will be working the rest of my life. When I was younger where I grew up I did not have the opportunity to reinvent myself, but, here in Israel it was a very new beginning and somehow I did. Now, I am having a very hard time trying to reinvent myself again. I draw a blank. I like writing things here and looking at other discussions now since I started doing it. There are some very nice people here like yourself. I just want to thank you for helping me get an idea for a discussion.
1 person likes this
