People forget the power of daydreaming. Was it Agatha Christie that said something along the lines of staring out the window was writing?
And sometimes busy is only something that we tell ourselves. After a week away visiting family, I came home with so much to do that I immediately felt overwhelmed, but when my brother dropped by in the afternoon and I stopped to play with his new virtual headset, I came back to my desk afterwards and realised how much I'd already done and could genuinely call it a day without guilt.
My motto: when in doubt, go for a walk. Double bonus. Exercise AND daydreaming/problem solving.
I love this story. I had a great day the first day the kids went back to school and by Friday, I was writing too-long-to-do lists. The time I had expanded, so my expectation I could do more and more and more grew, too. Time to dial it back this weekend and reset. Again! And go for a walk, like you say!
This week I created 7 less than perfect decoupaged jars to fill with candles for 6 of my dearest friends. I didn't like the results of the first 2, nay 3. then I hated # 1 and started over and then when 1 became 7 I hated it again but I left it. thinking perhaps one of my friends will choose than one which isn't "enough". Enough what --- so much BS inside our own heads. It's hard to set aside the clutter of day to day life and create with abandon and not judge ourselves along the way....
I definitely did not make candles. I went to Sask Market and bought 7 nice beeswax ones. I did arrange a few flowers from my garden and was particularly pleased how they turned out. It really can be a little thing that brings joy and makes us notice in the busyness of life.
I especially love the reminder to myself that it's all worth it. I think this is what I likely struggle with the most when it all feels overwhelming and frustrating. 'Of course it's worth it, there is no such thing as bad art' is what I remind myself of constantly as I take my own hand and guide myself to slow down and remember why I am here.
Thank you for taking a moment to write this for me. I'm just settling (well, flitting, actually) into a quiet writing hour before the kids get up and you reminding me is helpful--even as I wrote it for you the day before... I think we need to constantly remind ourselves to come back to that creativity at the centre.
Hi Alice,
This is so fantastic and important for us writers to remember. There are so many quotations about this and I love these two:
Disney: It's kind of fun to do the impossible.
Einstein: Imagination is more important than knowledge.
I love both of these, Regina! Thank you so much for sharing. And I'm glad you enjoyed the post. xoxox
People forget the power of daydreaming. Was it Agatha Christie that said something along the lines of staring out the window was writing?
And sometimes busy is only something that we tell ourselves. After a week away visiting family, I came home with so much to do that I immediately felt overwhelmed, but when my brother dropped by in the afternoon and I stopped to play with his new virtual headset, I came back to my desk afterwards and realised how much I'd already done and could genuinely call it a day without guilt.
My motto: when in doubt, go for a walk. Double bonus. Exercise AND daydreaming/problem solving.
I love this story. I had a great day the first day the kids went back to school and by Friday, I was writing too-long-to-do lists. The time I had expanded, so my expectation I could do more and more and more grew, too. Time to dial it back this weekend and reset. Again! And go for a walk, like you say!
This week I created 7 less than perfect decoupaged jars to fill with candles for 6 of my dearest friends. I didn't like the results of the first 2, nay 3. then I hated # 1 and started over and then when 1 became 7 I hated it again but I left it. thinking perhaps one of my friends will choose than one which isn't "enough". Enough what --- so much BS inside our own heads. It's hard to set aside the clutter of day to day life and create with abandon and not judge ourselves along the way....
I love that you make jars and then perhaps candles, too. I arranged some flowers from Sobeys today which was very pleasing ❤️🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸
I definitely did not make candles. I went to Sask Market and bought 7 nice beeswax ones. I did arrange a few flowers from my garden and was particularly pleased how they turned out. It really can be a little thing that brings joy and makes us notice in the busyness of life.
I especially love the reminder to myself that it's all worth it. I think this is what I likely struggle with the most when it all feels overwhelming and frustrating. 'Of course it's worth it, there is no such thing as bad art' is what I remind myself of constantly as I take my own hand and guide myself to slow down and remember why I am here.
These are great prompts Alice, thank you.
Thank you for taking a moment to write this for me. I'm just settling (well, flitting, actually) into a quiet writing hour before the kids get up and you reminding me is helpful--even as I wrote it for you the day before... I think we need to constantly remind ourselves to come back to that creativity at the centre.
xoxox
Alice