Winter Guest Post by Tara Leaver
December 13th, 2011, 24 Comments
What to do when your creativity succumbs to winter
As winter starts to make its presence felt round here, I’ve been thinking a lot about cycles. About listening to my body and honouring its needs and what that really means. This is something relatively new to my Western monkey mind, for whom achievement is paramount, and only a certain amount of rest is permitted!
I’m a summer girl with a history of depression. Traditionally winter {which can be a long, chilly, dark and wet affair here in England} would take its toll on my well-being before it had even begun. I rejected the darkness and of course winter became something to dread and struggle through. I gotta tell you, I’m really tired of the concept of resigning myself to the belief that some things are ‘just like that’.
My teacher has been showing me another way to approach winter. We all know about cycles – the seasons, women’s monthly cycles, Saturn Returns, to name just a few - but I’m not sure how often we really notice or accept them, let alone embrace them. We often seem to ignore or resist our personal cycles, because of commitments and jobs and things that Must Be Done. There is no time sculpted into our lives for honouring the quiet, ‘winter’ parts of our cycles. Winter is about resting, seeds waiting underground, animals hibernating. Nature knows and allows this; we can too, if we choose.
We creative types have our own cycles. Sometimes the inspiration is flowing fast and furious, and it’s all you can do to ‘get it all down’ quick enough; other times we feel stagnant or dry – nothing inspires us and efforts to force it result in frustration.
I learned the hard way that I must honour my creative cycle. Since I made the decision to just let it be what it is, to stop labelling it, judging myself, feeling disappointed or guilty or antsy or impatient about it, I’ve come to see my own personal cycle as something, well, beautiful actually.
We are often so unaccustomed to being gentle with ourselves. While I learn to apply this self- kindness to all the other areas of my life and leave the internal dark days far behind, at least when it comes to my creativity I have learned to give myself the ease of knowing that when it’s quiet and I haven’t been into my studio for days {weeks, sometimes}, the cycle will come round again. And in the meantime, if I let it, my creativity will reveal itself in other ways. Even if it doesn’t, the focus here is honouring all parts of the cycle, not just the bits I may find easier or more comfortable.
Here are a few things I do when my creative cycle is in ‘winter’. They have evolved from trial and error, and are about giving myself over to it rather than trying to override or kick start it; perhaps they will help you too.
*Stop trying! Let the whole thing go like you just don’t care. Quite a challenge when your creativity is such a huge part of who you are, I know, but just trust me on this. What we resist persists, right? The more we poke at it and try to change it and don’t allow ourselves to accept it as it is, the more we are blocking the cycle from turning in its own time.
*Do something else. If you’re not yet ready to just not do, then redirect. If your thing is painting, try cooking {works for me!}. If it’s sewing, try drawing. If it’s photography, try writing. You get the idea. Sometimes our creativity needs new avenues to run down.
*Go outside. For me it’s the beach, every time. I started by just going there to sit; that has now evolved into me taking my sketchbook with absolutely no plan or pressure to use it. Sometimes I actually do use it. Sometimes I don’t. It’s all good. I have a friend who needs green; when she’s feeling uninspired or drained or stuck she goes out into the countryside, or even just the park, to get some chlorophyll and hug some trees.
*Distract your brain. If you’re giving yourself a hard time about how you haven’t done anything creative for ages, do something that gives you some respite from the chat in your head. Box sets often do the trick for me. You can’t get much less creative than lying under blankets passively watching images on a screen and sipping hot chocolate! I’ve worked my way through the entire seven series of Buffy the Vampire Slayer doing this. {I know.} I lay on the sofa and watched Buffy kick vampire ass until that familiar tickle inside drew me back into the studio without any decision making on my part. All I needed was to let myself have a time out, and for the cycle to bring itself round again.
What do you to do honour and embrace your personal creative winters? I’ve only touched on four of an infinite number of possibilities. Let’s put our heads together and lay out everything we’ve got. Let’s give ourselves and each other permission to honour all the parts of the cycle, even and especially the arctic wasteland parts. Share your wisdom
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Bio
I am an energy healer and artist living in Brighton in the UK. I paint with acrylics and mixed media, and my work is mostly bold and vibrant. I’m fascinated by symbolism and meaning, and love to bring my energy work together with my art to produce paintings that have infinite possible interpretations. And sometimes I just like to paint in pretty colours. :-)
Links
Website: www.taraleaver.com
Blog: www.taraleaver.com/blog
Etsy: www.etsy.com/shop/AquamarineArt
Facebook: Aquamarine Art: Mixed Media Paintings by Tara Leaver
Creative Every Day Check-In: December 12 – 18
December 12th, 2011, 19 Comments
This weekly check-in post is a place for Creative Every Day Challenge participants to share their creative activities.
Join in the Challenge: You can now sign-up for the 2012 Challenge here!
Ways to share: Once you've signed up, you can leave a comment on this post and/or use the "Mr. Linky" widget below to link to a blog post(s) about your creative activities during the days of 12/12/11 - 12/18/11.
The widget below is an optional method of sharing your creativity that makes it easier for others to check out what you're up to. You can use it to link to a blog post (or posts) or flickr image during the week listed. Or if you have a bunch of posts and don't want to link to all of them, you can link to your main blog page once. Do it in a way that makes sense and is fun for you! If you're unsure about how to use the widget, check out the "How to use the Mr. Linky widget" section on the Creative Every Day Challenge page. (If you're reading this in a RSS reader or email subscription, you will not see the "Mr. Linky widget", so click on over to the blog to use it.) If the Mr. Linky widget is missing from this blog post, it's probably a problem with their server and it will come back as soon as it's fixed. You can always leave your link in the comments.
You can also take advantage of the great CED flickr group to post your images and see what others are up to. If you're on Twitter, you can use the hashtag #CED2011 to help others find your Creative Every Day tweets!
Theme: The (totally optional) theme for December is Winter, which you can read more about and get ideas for here.
Happy Creating!
I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape - the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show. ~Andrew Wyeth
Winter Guest Post by Joanna Paterson
December 9th, 2011, 10 Comments
Creating with Darkness and Light
Creativity - like life itself - begins in darkness ~ Julia Cameron
The natural world reveals so many beautiful creativity lessons at this time of year.
Yes: the days are short, the earth is cold, the fields are a colourless dull-mud brown.
And yet, and yet:
Through the darkness we see a sudden splash of a rainbow cutting through a rain laden sky; a burst of sunlight illuminating that dull brown lifeless field; the pale wintry sun creating wild silhouettes with the bare bone trees, dancing like creatures of our deepest darkest imagination against the barren lines of the horizon.
It is all light revealed through darkness, pattern against the emptiness, life irrepressible through the shortest, darkest days.
And it is not just a light show.
It is a call to create: to make our own wildly dancing silhouettes, to illuminate with shafts of poetry, to paint a rainbow in shades of enchantment, to carve our words in pens dipped in the blackest of ink, dripping with colour and light.
To sing our songs of life, irrepressible, through the shortest, darkest days.
Heeding the call, and creating with darkness and light.
~~~
Joanna is a writer, poet and photographer who explores themes of creativity and connectedness with the natural world. She has recently published Earthflow: a book of photo-poetry inspired by places that call us home. You can find her blogging on landscapes, writing, poetry and practice at The Art of Everyday Wonder.
2012 Creative Every Day Challenge
December 8th, 2011, 13 Comments
2012 is right around the corner! Amazing, isn't it? And with the new year, comes a chance to renew your commitment to being Creative Every Day. I consider this year-long challenge a low pressure one. I don't expect people to create a masterpiece or post on their blogs every day of the year. What I hope is that the challenge invites you to find ways to integrate creativity into your everyday life. I've found that simply by focusing on every day creativity, that the opportunities to be creative sprout up everywhere...in cooking, decorating, playing, dancing, drawing, painting, photographing, crafting, singing, and so on!
You can read all about the challenge and it's history here and then sign up for the 2012 Challenge right here.
As in previous years, every month will have a totally optional theme. You can use the theme if you need some inspiration (sometimes having a guide is helpful!), ignore it if you have other plans, or mix it in as needed. And speaking of themes, I'd love to get some theme ideas from you! Brainstorm for me in the comments. If I use your theme idea this year, I'll be sure to mention you as that month's inspiration. I've got some ideas in mind and I've been considering re-using some themes from the first year (because they're good enough for another go!), but I'd love to hear your ideas as well.
Thank you to all the amazing creators who joined me in 2011. I hope to see you in 2012!
p.s. I've got some wonderful guest posters, new friends and old friends, sharing their thoughts on winter this month, while I gather myself after AEDM and prepare for the holidays. I'm excited to share their creative goodness with you. Enjoy!
Winter Guest Post by Jamie Ridler
December 7th, 2011, 3 Comments
Step into this magical meditation from creative living coach Jamie Ridler and connect to the spirit of the season. Discover the gifts Winter has in store for you.
Jamie Ridler is a creative living coach and the founder of Jamie Ridler Studios. From coaching to workshops, from podcasting to blogging, Jamieís work helps women find the confidence and courage to discover and express their creative selves so they can be the star they are. Website & Blog: Jamie Ridler Studios Facebook: Jamie Ridler Studios Twitter: @starshyne Podcast: Creative Living with Jamie and on iTunes.
p.s. From Leah: A special shout out to Jamie, who's celebrating a birthday today. Happy birthday, Jamie! You're a shining star in the world!
Winter Guest Post by Goddess Leonie
December 6th, 2011, 5 Comments
How to stay connected to nature even when it's cold!
Hola gorgeous goddesses!
For me, a huge part of my creativity is feeling connected with gorgeous nature. Before I create I get my hands in the earth, my face in the breeze, I let my skin tingle with the love of the earth.
I call it sacred grounding.
What's so important about grounding?
Grounding helps us get out of our heads & into our spirit.
It helps our souls feel centered & at home.
It helps to invigorate & inspire our creative spirit.
And most of all - it gives us the energy to birth our creative dreams!
Grounding in Winter
What happens though when it gets ding dang cold?
How can we stay connected to Mama Earth when it's freezing, and possibly even covered with the glorious white stuff?
A moment to acknowledge the purdy photo at the top of this post. I took this photo of my hunky-Wise Man-love a few years ago when it snowed here in Australia. It doesn’t snow here, so when it did have a freak burst last winter, we jumped in our jeep and headed for the mountains to play. We were standing in the snow just listening to the sound of quiet, to the sound of snowflakes rustling through the air. This photo was taken when I headed back for the car. I turned back to see my beautiful man, soaking in the moment, connecting with the earth. To me, this symbolises how to ground even when it’s white and cold – with arms wide open, embracing this whole gorgeous world.
How to Ground: Get outside
When I talk about grounding, I usually advise goddesses to get their band hands & feet on the ground.
To ground – you don’t NEED to have bare feet. If it’s warm enough, it’s delicious and gives you the extra joy of grass tickling your soles. But if it’s not – still take the time to go outside, and take some deep breaths outside.
The earth is a source of completely healing and rejuvenation for us. Try it out.
Go outside, look outside, look at the earth, look at the sky and take ten deep breaths.
Visualise yourself grounded.
When you *visualise* something, you enact the same neurological responses as you would if you were *experiencing* it. Visualisation can work so powerfully in grounding. In larger women’s circles, we often use a grounding visualisation inside instead of having the whole circle troop outside to do it.
So, either sit down or stand with your legs apart. Take deep breaths down into your core, right down into your belly. Visualise yourself as a tree – your branches reaching into the sky, legs growing like roots into the Earth. Feel yourself deeply connected into the soil and earth. See yourself as a strong oak tree – the perfect balance between sky and earth. With this image in mind, take three deep breaths in and out through your core – visualising that you are inhaling and exhaling through your solar plexus. On your last exhale, exhale with a noise… like an “aaaaaaaaaaaaah.”
Use a Tree.
You can also use actual trees to connect and ground because their roots go through the snow right into the earth. They are the perfect symbol of groundedness!
Is there a park you can go to that would give you a little bit of quiet space to connect with a tree? Even if you could pop down a plastic picnic mat and sit with your back against the tree for a few minutes, you can pick up on the energy, groundedness and strength behind you.
Different trees have different energies and medicines. There are a couple of great books that give the meanings and energies of trees – but as always, the knowledge, wisdom and intuition is right inside you. Give it a go. Listen. Feel. Experience. Trust. This is second nature to you.
Let the beauty of the world intoxicate you
There is so much gorgeous beauty in this world. Nature can be our biggest healer & muse when we let her in!
Get grounded! Make art!
Do let us know how you go! I’d love to hear your experiences and soul stories!
How do you stay grounded to mama earth even when she's covered in cold?
wild joyful love,
Goddess Leonie is the creator of the Goddess Circle an online creativity & spirituality world for goddesses. She blogs from a tree (or her turquoise gypsy caravan) & makes miracles happen. She lives in tropical paradise in Australia with her hunky love & their owl baby daughter Ostara. You can find her at www.goddessguidebook.com. She's just released her uber popular 2012: Creating your Goddess Year workbook & planner too!
Creative Every Day Check-In: December 5 – 11
December 5th, 2011, 20 Comments
This weekly check-in post is a place for Creative Every Day Challenge participants to share their creative activities.
Sign-ups for the 2012 Challenge will open soon!
Join in the Challenge: Read all the details and sign up for the 2011 Creative Every Day Challenge here!
Ways to share: Once you've signed up, you can leave a comment on this post and/or use the "Mr. Linky" widget below to link to a blog post(s) about your creative activities during the days of 12/5/11 - 12/11/11.
The widget below is an optional method of sharing your creativity that makes it easier for others to check out what you're up to. You can use it to link to a blog post (or posts) or flickr image during the week listed. Or if you have a bunch of posts and don't want to link to all of them, you can link to your main blog page once. Do it in a way that makes sense and is fun for you! If you're unsure about how to use the widget, check out the "How to use the Mr. Linky widget" section on the Creative Every Day Challenge page. (If you're reading this in a RSS reader or email subscription, you will not see the "Mr. Linky widget", so click on over to the blog to use it.) If the Mr. Linky widget is missing from this blog post, it's probably a problem with their server and it will come back as soon as it's fixed. You can always leave your link in the comments.
You can also take advantage of the great CED flickr group to post your images and see what others are up to. If you're on Twitter, you can use the hashtag #CED2011 to help others find your Creative Every Day tweets!
Theme: The (totally optional) theme for December is Winter, which you can read more about and get ideas for here.
Happy Creating!
Winter, a lingering season, is a time to gather golden moments,embark upon a sentimental journey, and enjoy every idle hour. ~John Boswell
Oh, How She Grows
December 2nd, 2011, 17 Comments
My baby girl is 7 months old today! I looked back at some of her pictures in her little chair over the last seven months and was amazed at how much she's grown. Blows my mind! She's such a bright light.
Here's some of them.
At 2 weeks:
At 6 weeks:
10 weeks:
3 months:
4 months:
5 months:
6 months:
7 months, today!
I love you, little Mush!
Creative Every Day Check-In: Dec 1 – 4
December 1st, 2011, 13 Comments
This weekly check-in post is a place for Creative Every Day Challenge participants to share their creative activities.
This week's check-in is short to cover us until Monday's regular weekly check-in. Regular check-ins will resume next week! Sign-ups for the 2012 Challenge will open soon!
Join in the Challenge: Read all the details and sign up for the 2011 Creative Every Day Challenge here!
Ways to share: Once you've signed up, you can leave a comment on this post and/or use the "Mr. Linky" widget below to link to a blog post(s) about your creative activities during the days of 10/24/11 - 10/31/11.
The widget below is an optional method of sharing your creativity that makes it easier for others to check out what you're up to. You can use it to link to a blog post (or posts) or flickr image during the week listed. Or if you have a bunch of posts and don't want to link to all of them, you can link to your main blog page once. Do it in a way that makes sense and is fun for you! If you're unsure about how to use the widget, check out the "How to use the Mr. Linky widget" section on the Creative Every Day Challenge page. (If you're reading this in a RSS reader or email subscription, you will not see the "Mr. Linky widget", so click on over to the blog to use it.) If the Mr. Linky widget is missing from this blog post, it's probably a problem with their server and it will come back as soon as it's fixed. You can always leave your link in the comments.
You can also take advantage of the great CED flickr group to post your images and see what others are up to. If you're on Twitter, you can use the hashtag #CED2011 to help others find your Creative Every Day tweets!
Theme: The (totally optional) theme for December is Winter, which you can read more about and get ideas for here.
Happy Creating!
In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer. ~Albert Camus
Day 30: Bird in the Woods
November 30th, 2011, 13 Comments
Day 30! Woohoo! I'm proud of myself for getting through this month and I hope you all are feeling good about what you've accomplished.
I started to feel like my paintings were starting to tell a story recently. Perhaps if I put them all together, I'll be able to see what the narrative is.
Tomorrow I'll have a check-in for the Creative Every Day Challenge to carry us through til Monday, when I'll resume the regular weekly check-ins.
Congrats to all the Art Every Day Month participants. You all rock!
