When you learn how to make art – whether it’s oil painting or playing in a rock band – you develop more than just a talent.
It can also help you learn some pretty important life lessons about things like failure and vulnerability.
In our final Creating Connection story, we return to Girls Rock Detroit where one camper, Maddie, found the confidence to open up and be herself.
At Girls Rock, Maddie got the chance to explore the world of DJ’ing. She also played keyboards and wrote songs in a band. She says her time at Girls Rock Detroit, and songwriting especially, has helped her be more confident talking to people about her autism. Maddie says at first, she was not open about her diagnosis with peers.
“At school, people can just be really stupid and mean towards me, which I don't understand whatsoever. But when I started meeting the people at Girls Rock Detroit, I realized that people were going to be okay with it, so I just spat it out. I'm autistic and I'm proud of that,” she said.
You can find the full transcript of Maddie’s story here.
Creating Connection Michigan is produced by Dan Collison and Elizabeth Meister of Long Haul Productions for the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.
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