On Not Giving Up

One of the most rewarding parts of painting for me is the "happy accident" effect. This is especially true of watercolor paints. Sometimes the first wash isn't quite dry enough and the colors bleed. Sometimes the previous layer is too dry and the next layer seems too harsh. And then sometimes there is a first wash that has so much vibrance, it's scary to continue to paint on it for fear of suffocating the energy.
This painting really got under my skin. I had taken a photo of the first watercolor wash and posted it to Instagram. The more I looked at the wash, the more I felt that the painting could be "finished". I kept painting. I drowned the magic. At that point I could have either trashed the whole thing or desperately try to resuscitate the painting. I chose to keep going. And going. And going. About four thousand layers later, the flower started to come back to life. No one but me really knows the angst that went into this simple poppy.
If I was a bit more eloquent I would uncover a great and wise metaphor.
But I think you get the point.