YAYA

The person who had the greatest influence on me as an artist was my grandmother (Yaya, Greek for grandmother) Ellie Cavis. While thinking of her as my muse, curious of the word’s origin, I looked up the definition of this word and was delighted to discover that the word “muse” original context is from Greek and Roman mythology. The nine Goddesses, daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, who presided over the Arts and Sciences. My Yaya, being of Greek descent is definitely my muse. Not only was she a passionate poet and artist, she was one of the kindest people I have ever, still to this day, come in contact with. Kindness came natural to her as swimming comes to our flippered friends. From an early age she could see my deep interest in the Arts and fostered growth, providing opportunities to explore every avenue imaginable when it came to exercising that creative muscle. My childhood was filled with putting on plays for family, painting, drawing, paper mache, playing the piano, writing, and endless arts and crafts. I was able to enjoy a plethora of artistic experience and expression throughout my youth orchestrated by my Yaya. She laid the groundwork for me as an artist and opened my imagination to the limitless possibilities that are available to an artist. She had an immense appreciation for nature and was adept at finding art within it , using pressed leaves or seashells as her inspiration to create. She truly was an amazing person with a wonderful gift of giving of herself to others, leading by example with grace and humility. Ellie Cavis founded the Manatee and Sarasota Poetry groups in Florida, which are still active today. She left her mark as a Poet in my life as well as the lives of many others. 

From as far back as I can recall I would write with her, receiving constructive criticism and being informed of writing techniques such as alliteration, metaphor, allegory, and hyperbole. At an age when most other kids would rather shove bamboo up their eyelids than pick up a book. She sat through a Shakespeare workshop that was being held at the local community college when I was twelve years old, helping me find the brilliant iambic pentameter in which Shakespeare constructed his work. She would remind me that within art, especially writing, you have to know the rules first in order to make the conscious choice to break them. In order to deviate from the beaten path in literature you must recognize and appreciate the foundation that has been laid before you. Then you can throw care to the wind and have fun! She encouraged me to make up new words, combine writing techniques to create your own unique voice as an artist. Although she has passed from this world I still feel her presence with me, especially when I have a pen in my hand writing with passionately what has yet to be written. I have a unfaltering belief that she is gleaming down at me from a candescent artist studio above with her cherished smile and her extraordinary eternal love.