Hey Everyone!

I’d like to share something special with you today- my first ever short (…mini) story! I didn’t plan on writing the short story until I started bringing my vision to life. I soon realized how the underlying messages regarding change in each of my illustrations are very relatable. So, I decided to tie it all together in some story time! Before I get to the story though, I’d like to touch on my inspirations behind each illustration.

The first of the trio, “Waiting on the World,” was a result of creative energy that I had to release after this year’s presidential election. Regardless of how our president-elect will perform for our nation in the years to come, there were still some hurtful things said against certain people in our community during the campaign. The presidential-elect's intentions might not have been entirely negative, but this indirect encouragement of bad behavior, along with the continuous bad news around us temporarily decreased my faith in love and humanity. I felt exhausted and was longing for the same naivety that a child has whilst growing up. I tried to bring this frustrated feeling to light in this illustration.

The second of the three, “Making the World,” was a result of maturation, if you will, on my initial feelings of disappointment. There are so many different changes going on in our world and I’ll try to pay attention to the positive ones more often. The only way to change course is through action while having fun in the process, which is what I tried to depict in this illustration.

Finally, the last of the series, “Being the World,” was inspired by the pure greatness of Lord Ganesh and his meaning in Hinduism. It’s said that while his mother took a shower, Ganesh watched over the household and refused to let Lord Shiva in as a visitor when he arrived. Angered by the rejection, Lord Shiva cut off Ganesh’s head symbolizing the act of ridding oneself of ego. Shiva then replaces Ganesh's head with a wise elephant’s head to bring him back to life, symbolizing purity and divine power. This origin of Lord Ganesh as the almighty protector from challenges in life is part of why so many people favorite Him and ask for his help so often. With all this said, I used this final illustration to imagine the main character of the story to be spiritually connected to his world after creating positive change.

I hope this story inspires people to create change anyway they know how- blogging, illustrating, investing, working, anything! It’s all about consistently passing on some positive vibes, right? Hope you all enjoy reading this! Comment & like below the full blog post to let me know how you REALLY feel! <3 AW

SHORT STORY: “GANESH’S WORLD”
By: Apoorva Weber

Moral: Take actions to create positive change and your world will glow!

One day, Ganesh’s mom handed him the world in his hands. His mom stated, “This world has just been created for you. Make sure you positively nurture it and you will see it glow like never before.” Excited to witness this magnificent glow, Ganesh tried everything in his power– he rolled it, punched it, threw it. But, nothing he did worked! He became frustrated and sat on his world. He even ordered his rat friend to help him. Sadly, it still did not work. Ganesh was a determined guy, so he waited on his world to glow and asked his friend for help everyday.

A few years later, Ganesh found his frustrations with his world maturing. He exclaimed to the rat, “ I’m tired of waiting on this world to glow! I’m going to play music happily and enjoy the time I have with my world instead.” The rat happily agreed immediately, as he did not have to work too hard anymore! As they joyously celebrated by singing and dancing, Ganesh decided to play with the world and start spinning it on his trunk like a big ball. His rat friend jumped on the world for exercise and entertainment.

As they were playing, Ganesh realized that many impurities on the world were flying off like fleas fly off an animal. He soon realized that he was positively changing the world as he celebrated with his friend. He continued to spin the world to shake off all the dirt, grime, and hatred everyday for years to come.

Decades later Ganesh was wiser and had shaken off all the impurities from his world that he possibly could. One day, the world had finally started to glow like never before. The light and sparkle filled the whole universe! Ganesh was thrilled! So many years of work and nurturing finally paid off! After awing at the glow for a few minutes, Ganesh felt forever connected to his world. Proud of his work, Ganesh turned to his rat friend and said, “This world is a part of me now. It glows because of me and my happy spirit!” From that day, Ganesh never let the glow fade in his world and kept his rat friend close.

THE END