By Josh McFadden
Lael Henderson grew up as a pretty normal kid. Actually, in his words, his life was “ideal.” Raised by two parents in the Southern California city of Torrance, Iael got to spend his time soaking up the sun at the beach. It was a far cry from the life his parents had as children. They grew up far from the coast—in Wyoming, the least populated state in the U.S.
“Not many of my friends had the kind of home life that I did when I was a kid,” he says.
Unlike his parents, Iael didn’t have to worry about doing farm chores, so he had more time to work on his biggest talent: drawing. He discovered early on that he had a knack for taking a pencil or a pen to paper and doodling characters or designs.
The Beginning
Lael is humble about his first forays into sketching.
“Looking back at some of my earliest sketchbooks, I wasn’t all that exceptional, but I was just a little better than most in my classes,” he says.
You remember how it was in school: Some kids were good at math, and some kids were good readers; some kids excelled in sports, and some kids were popular. For Iael, he was that kid who everyone knew as the artist.
“From my earliest memories in school, I was the guy that could draw,” he says. “So, of course, I did it more than most because it was a way to get positive attention, and I really enjoyed it. Drawing was always fun for me.”
Finding a mentor and teacher
Lael’s talents and passions for the arts grew leaps and bounds as a child, thanks largely to his friend’s mother. This neighbor was a gifted artist. It seemed as though she was always doing something creative. One day she would draw characters from cereal boxes on her kids’ lunch bags. The next day you could find her in the garage doing silk screening. Her abilities fascinated Iael. He watched her intently as she worked with multiple colors. It wasn’t like she was doing anything grand and extraordinary. But her simple art projects were a huge influence. She motivated Iael to expand his creative thinking and to explore bigger possibilities than he’d ever thought of.
“It was like magic to me,” Lael says. “She could do perfect little copies one after another. I would look at her sketches and just be amazed—so much better than I could do. I would copy her. She was just a really cool mom who was always busy creating. She was probably my biggest influence.”
There was no YouTube or Google in those days, so Iael found other ideas and guidance from books and magazines.
A break and a return
Like so many of us do, Lael took some detours from his creative roots after high school. After all, it was time to make a living and pay the bills. For the next several years, he put his sketchbooks and writing utensils on the shelf. He even spent a couple of years in Korea and learned the Korean language.
Then he turned his attention to college.
Iael’s father told him if he majored in business and minored in Korean he’d “be set.” But Iael didn’t feel set. Those weren’t his passions. They didn’t feel right. He stopped taking Korean classes and tried to find his creative spark again. From there he moved to graphic design, but it didn’t take him long to realize this still wasn’t the best fit. That’s when he found illustration.
“Things got fun for me again,” he says.
Create every day
Today, Iael’s creative juices are in full force—both for his livelihood and for pure enjoyment. He does freelance artwork frequently and tries to make drawing and sketching a daily habit. You can find many of his drawings on Instagram at @laelhenderson_art.
He says there’s nothing quite like sitting down with a pencil or pen and put his ideas to paper. He also has also creative plans for the future.
“I like having a reason to draw,” he says. “It’s just for fun; no one pays me to do it now, so in some ways that is liberating. Hopefully, I’ll have my health long enough past retirement to get back to what I really love. I have dreams of becoming an oil painter someday. It may be just a dream, but it keeps me sane to have that tucked away in a safe place.”
Follow your dreams
Ever think work and other responsibilities get in the way of what you love doing most? Iael says to avoid this trap. If art is what moves you and gives you satisfaction, don’t push it away no matter what. He believes if you work hard enough and put action into your passion, you can find a gratifying job in creative works—and you can enjoy it in your free time.
“Passion seems to make the difference nowadays,” he says. “Do what you love, and love what you do. If you work hard and love what you do, you can make a living doing it. Most likely, you can find a job that you can get paid for being creative.”
Besides, there may be more chances to put your creative talents to use than you may realize, especially if you put your heart and soul into your dreams like Iael has.
There are more [opportunities] than you think out there,” he says. “Creatives are all over and in almost every business these days. My advice is work hard, press forward and don’t give up. If you want anything bad enough, you’ll get it eventually!”