[ A Home of Our Own ]

In my mother’s tongue

painter

is a combination

of

画 (huà):

painting or picture

and 家 (jiā):

home or family

in fact

almost all

creative professions

from author to potter

artist and lyricist

are constructed

in the same way

a painter is a painter

not because of

some qualification

or validation

from another

but simply

by virtue

of having made

a home

in the form

so let’s not ask

anymore:

what are you, or who?

instead,

where are you

most at home?

and

have you

made it your own?

Translations: 作家 (zuò jiā) – author; 陶艺家 (táoyì jiā) – potter; 艺术家 (yìshù jiā) – artist; 作词家 (zuòcí

jiā) – lyricist.