My daily creative practice has always been active but is incredibly important in times of turmoil. I knit every day. Right now, I am designing my 4000-square-foot vegetable garden, and by August, I will have a masterpiece of colors, textures, and tastes. My writing is growing into a craft and I am enjoying the process of expanding my skills.
Hi Sue. It sounds wonderful! I'm garden jealous! I too have been working on expanding my garden and can't wait to see what unfolds there. I love that you knit everyday. I just started knitting recently, but I do really love it. It's good to keep our hands in motion, yeah? Keep on creating!
I'm letting my garden "go wild" (recognizing that I am part of that wildness), which feels like a different kind of creating. It's not as chaotic as it probably sounds because I am a wild foods educator and have spent the past 40 years learning about and using wild plants. I've connected with my local, organic food growers and we have a network of exchange that feels even more healing than growing my own produce.
Last fall, my husband and I took down the electric fence around our main forest garden. That felt as good as taking off a bra at the end of a long work day! 😂I began moving some of the perennial herbs, such as Elecampane, Mimosa, Mugwort, Orris, Boneset, Valerian, and others into the space. This spring we created a huge, deep Asparagus bed and look forward to that establishing itself in the coming years. I've been watching the returning wildlings, like Yarrow, Motherwort, Anise Hyssop, Mullein, Echinacea, Mustards, Dandelion, Burdock, Yellowdock, and Chickweed and the tucking annual greens and flowers in among them. The Cherry, Crabapple, Hawthorns, Redbud, Spicebush, Witch Hazel, and Plum trees have been flowering gloriously and it feels like a wonderful affirmation that we're working cooperatively to create what both the land here and my community needs. So many of these will become medicines, foods, teachers, and guides this year. I'm really fortunate to have so many good folks growing the tomatoes, beans, corn, beets, cucumbers, squash and more that we will be nourished by. Finding this new way to think about interdependence in the midst of the chaos is a medicine all its own. 🌿💚
I absolutely love this! Leenie. And I see it as such a creative process. That thing of reconnecting back to nature and co-creating with nature to me... that's exactly the same thing as co-creating with creativity. It's that energy of life, right? That energy that inspires us and reconnects us and moves us back into this state of alignment in a sense. That's how I feel about creativity and I feel that when I am also in my garden and listening to the land and letting things be. A couple years ago I got rid of as much of the grass as I could and I've created this wild flower meadow that is not cultivated in any way and I absolutely love it. Every year now I just wonder what's going to come up and what will it look like this year? Because it changes. So I think you're on to something and it absolutely makes sense that it is part of your creative process. I love it!
Oh my gosh I feel so much less alone when I know others have an innate need to use their hands to truly experience ... well, everything! I can never be "making" enough! Yarn, clay, paint, paper, wood ... I am learning how to "make" simply for the sake of making vs. producing, though. Does that make sense? I am so burned out from a lifetime of associating worth with productivity, even in the vein of creativity. Which are so diametrically opposed in the purest sense.
Thank you for sharing! And for allowing me to see myself in you. 💛
Yeah, it totally makes sense to focus on simply creating over needing to produce something necessarily. And yeah, I think it's so important for us to be coming together and creating and recognizing that we're not alone. It's one of the reasons why I host my makers circles. Our creativity is healing, it's the way that we stop and listen within, and we get to channel that creative energy in a way that also helps us live our lives more fully. So I'm glad that you're doing all the things that you want to do and making all the things you want to make. 🫶
Beth, I’m so glad you’re pulling those watercolors out and making art. Having time to focus on other things helps for sure. Its one of the reasons why I lead the makers circle too for subscribers, for that chance at least once a month to focus on something creative!
I made a commitment to sketching and/or painting every day on July 1, 2023 and have kept it up through some big challenges. I love the little 4”x4” Talens Art Creations sketchbooks-and am now on book #13! I wanted to do this to support myself through health & healthcare system challenges. Then I read the amazing book, Your Brain on Art, which inspired me even more. Also highly recommend Wendy MacNoughton’s Draw Together Substack -wonderful upbeat community of artists. Thanks for your post.😊
Nella, that's amazing! Way to stay with it. I know that can be hard to do. I love that book, Your Brain on Art. And thanks for the recommendation to Wendy's substack. I'll check it out!
Thanks, Stacy. It really hasn't been that hard. I do Zen Doodles & keep it simple. It's why I like the small sketchbook. A sense of accomplishment in one doodle! :)
It's handy to have when I'm on hold - better than killing time online. Instead I doodle. If I'm pressed for time, I'll just do one sketch to continue the commitment. Feels like meditation. Fun!
Art, music, literature and dance are means by which we human beings experience and communicate the emotions associated with "sanity".
“Art is standing with one hand extended into the universe and one hand extended into the world, and letting ourselves be a conduit for passing energy.”
Drawing and painting have become my lifeline amidst the chaos. I have a daily practice of creating “doodles” on my calendar that helps me connect with a spirit of playfulness, even when it feels like the world is burning down. Painting feels like a gift I can offer to myself and to the world.
Terri I love that. I feel like doodling doesn't get enough credit! Most of my creative work is playful, it's my best channel to spirit. Hang in there. 🫶
And you really do lift spirits and brighten the world with your art. I have your watercolor Welcome Spring! postcard right on my desk to see first thing each morning. 🌿💚
I really needed to read this, thank you! I’ve been struggling with so much anger and sadness and making art felt like I wasn’t doing anything to help, likely truly help to make change, to make a difference.
Lately when I do make art I’ve been reaching for string, yarn, rope and threads to weave and stitch. I’m a painter but this tactile medium feels so good. 💖
Thank you Jennifer. Eck. I know it's madness out there. How amazing though that you're connecting into art in a different way. The tactile stuff can be so beautiful and regulating for our nervous systems! Hang in there and keep making. 🙌❤️
Your story resonates with me. I stayed home from school a lot as a child. First, feigning illness, and eventually just telling my mother, I don’t feel like going today. I’d often use the time drawing or just simply resting. I needed the solitude. The world just held too much stimulation. Creating has always been my refuge.
Aaaah Stacy, it feels like forever since I 'saw' you, and yet rediscovering you and your words in these windows makes it feel just like yesterday when we were weaving threads together in Daphne's safe creative space. So happy to soak up some more of your wisdom and sparkle in here now x
Helloooo Betsy! So nice to hear from you and know you are here! It has been forever. Looking forward to soaking up your wisdom and sparkle here too! 💕🫶🏼
Exactly the reminder I needed. My version of not feeling like I've earned a "sick day" is to turn whatever I am doing into a job, complete with deadlines, obligations, and productivity quotas. It's one of the reasons I have not turned on a paywall on Substack. This is a place I come to share creatively and be inspired by the creations of others. I'm still learning how to stay present with the JOY of the creative life. Thank you so much. 🌿💚
I love what you write. It is lovely hearing of others who have an innate drive to create. I've been working on a huge blanket for well over a year, knitted and crocheted. No pattern, no stitch count, no rules just colour and textures I love. It looks like a landscape from above. I'm also crocheting my first granny square blanket. I also have my hook and yarn with me, it helps with my anxieties. I have autism and am my autistic younger daughter's full time carer. I also have a hexagon quilt cover to add wadding to and finish and I love to paint and sometimes sew or lino print. Lovely speaking to you.
Wow Beth! Sounds like you have some amazing projects in the works. I love that you just go for it, no rules! Yay you! Thank you for sharing your creative spark! 🫶🏼
Kim. Things definitely can feel hard these days. Hopefully though you can find other creative ways to feed your soul. Maybe it's not art art but something else like gardening, good meal, some nice flowers. 🫶
I feel this so deeply. As a woman who’s always felt the clock chasing her, justifying my rest, my pleasure, my joy and trying to be “productive” for the sake of my value… it’s been a journey discovering my value in the state of being. The innate being of me. Expressing my art as allowed me to find joy and giving my self permission to engage in this practice without earning it first is still a challenge but one worth fighting.
Thank you for this Ally. So much of our journey as we head into this third act of ours is finding this sense of value, right? It's a journey. I love that you are dipping into that so deeply. Feeling it! And that your creativity is a part of the process. Yummy!
Yes! I started crocheting amigurumi back in the fall. Then I decided to join Insta and make little reels and videos of my creations before I gave them away. Now I’m creating here. My mom used to give me 2 mental health days a semester. Days where I could stay home without being sick. Only requirement was that I had no tests or projects that day.
Valerie, how cute! I totally had to go look up what amigurumi was, but how sweet! And I love that you give them away. What a lovely gift to people, joyful things, yay! And wow, your mom sounds cool. I hope you got to have a bit yes day on those days!!
My daily creative practice has always been active but is incredibly important in times of turmoil. I knit every day. Right now, I am designing my 4000-square-foot vegetable garden, and by August, I will have a masterpiece of colors, textures, and tastes. My writing is growing into a craft and I am enjoying the process of expanding my skills.
Hi Sue. It sounds wonderful! I'm garden jealous! I too have been working on expanding my garden and can't wait to see what unfolds there. I love that you knit everyday. I just started knitting recently, but I do really love it. It's good to keep our hands in motion, yeah? Keep on creating!
I'm letting my garden "go wild" (recognizing that I am part of that wildness), which feels like a different kind of creating. It's not as chaotic as it probably sounds because I am a wild foods educator and have spent the past 40 years learning about and using wild plants. I've connected with my local, organic food growers and we have a network of exchange that feels even more healing than growing my own produce.
Last fall, my husband and I took down the electric fence around our main forest garden. That felt as good as taking off a bra at the end of a long work day! 😂I began moving some of the perennial herbs, such as Elecampane, Mimosa, Mugwort, Orris, Boneset, Valerian, and others into the space. This spring we created a huge, deep Asparagus bed and look forward to that establishing itself in the coming years. I've been watching the returning wildlings, like Yarrow, Motherwort, Anise Hyssop, Mullein, Echinacea, Mustards, Dandelion, Burdock, Yellowdock, and Chickweed and the tucking annual greens and flowers in among them. The Cherry, Crabapple, Hawthorns, Redbud, Spicebush, Witch Hazel, and Plum trees have been flowering gloriously and it feels like a wonderful affirmation that we're working cooperatively to create what both the land here and my community needs. So many of these will become medicines, foods, teachers, and guides this year. I'm really fortunate to have so many good folks growing the tomatoes, beans, corn, beets, cucumbers, squash and more that we will be nourished by. Finding this new way to think about interdependence in the midst of the chaos is a medicine all its own. 🌿💚
I absolutely love this! Leenie. And I see it as such a creative process. That thing of reconnecting back to nature and co-creating with nature to me... that's exactly the same thing as co-creating with creativity. It's that energy of life, right? That energy that inspires us and reconnects us and moves us back into this state of alignment in a sense. That's how I feel about creativity and I feel that when I am also in my garden and listening to the land and letting things be. A couple years ago I got rid of as much of the grass as I could and I've created this wild flower meadow that is not cultivated in any way and I absolutely love it. Every year now I just wonder what's going to come up and what will it look like this year? Because it changes. So I think you're on to something and it absolutely makes sense that it is part of your creative process. I love it!
Oh my gosh I feel so much less alone when I know others have an innate need to use their hands to truly experience ... well, everything! I can never be "making" enough! Yarn, clay, paint, paper, wood ... I am learning how to "make" simply for the sake of making vs. producing, though. Does that make sense? I am so burned out from a lifetime of associating worth with productivity, even in the vein of creativity. Which are so diametrically opposed in the purest sense.
Thank you for sharing! And for allowing me to see myself in you. 💛
Yeah, it totally makes sense to focus on simply creating over needing to produce something necessarily. And yeah, I think it's so important for us to be coming together and creating and recognizing that we're not alone. It's one of the reasons why I host my makers circles. Our creativity is healing, it's the way that we stop and listen within, and we get to channel that creative energy in a way that also helps us live our lives more fully. So I'm glad that you're doing all the things that you want to do and making all the things you want to make. 🫶
You nailed it! I so feel that habituated pressure to produce, produce, produce. I'm working on it one joyful play day at a time.
Love it!
This is so perfect. Exactly how I feel right now. And your line about being mostly unemployable in the traditional sense- Me Too! 😊
Right now I sit down with my watercolors every day and mostly make bad art, but it’s helping me stay sane!!
Beth, I’m so glad you’re pulling those watercolors out and making art. Having time to focus on other things helps for sure. Its one of the reasons why I lead the makers circle too for subscribers, for that chance at least once a month to focus on something creative!
I made a commitment to sketching and/or painting every day on July 1, 2023 and have kept it up through some big challenges. I love the little 4”x4” Talens Art Creations sketchbooks-and am now on book #13! I wanted to do this to support myself through health & healthcare system challenges. Then I read the amazing book, Your Brain on Art, which inspired me even more. Also highly recommend Wendy MacNoughton’s Draw Together Substack -wonderful upbeat community of artists. Thanks for your post.😊
Nella, that's amazing! Way to stay with it. I know that can be hard to do. I love that book, Your Brain on Art. And thanks for the recommendation to Wendy's substack. I'll check it out!
Thanks, Stacy. It really hasn't been that hard. I do Zen Doodles & keep it simple. It's why I like the small sketchbook. A sense of accomplishment in one doodle! :)
It's handy to have when I'm on hold - better than killing time online. Instead I doodle. If I'm pressed for time, I'll just do one sketch to continue the commitment. Feels like meditation. Fun!
I paint. Not because I paint well but because I desire to paint well, I paint. I, too, always felt guilty despite only calling in when I was sick.
Yes! Keep painting, no matter what. 🫶
Yes! 🖤
Art, music, literature and dance are means by which we human beings experience and communicate the emotions associated with "sanity".
“Art is standing with one hand extended into the universe and one hand extended into the world, and letting ourselves be a conduit for passing energy.”
•Albert Einstein
Donna, ooh great quote! Thanks 🫶
Drawing and painting have become my lifeline amidst the chaos. I have a daily practice of creating “doodles” on my calendar that helps me connect with a spirit of playfulness, even when it feels like the world is burning down. Painting feels like a gift I can offer to myself and to the world.
Terri I love that. I feel like doodling doesn't get enough credit! Most of my creative work is playful, it's my best channel to spirit. Hang in there. 🫶
And you really do lift spirits and brighten the world with your art. I have your watercolor Welcome Spring! postcard right on my desk to see first thing each morning. 🌿💚
Thank you! 🙏
I really needed to read this, thank you! I’ve been struggling with so much anger and sadness and making art felt like I wasn’t doing anything to help, likely truly help to make change, to make a difference.
Lately when I do make art I’ve been reaching for string, yarn, rope and threads to weave and stitch. I’m a painter but this tactile medium feels so good. 💖
Thank you Jennifer. Eck. I know it's madness out there. How amazing though that you're connecting into art in a different way. The tactile stuff can be so beautiful and regulating for our nervous systems! Hang in there and keep making. 🙌❤️
Your story resonates with me. I stayed home from school a lot as a child. First, feigning illness, and eventually just telling my mother, I don’t feel like going today. I’d often use the time drawing or just simply resting. I needed the solitude. The world just held too much stimulation. Creating has always been my refuge.
The world can really be so much. Glad you had the opportunity (and the mom) to have that space to create and rest. 🙌🏼💕
Aaaah Stacy, it feels like forever since I 'saw' you, and yet rediscovering you and your words in these windows makes it feel just like yesterday when we were weaving threads together in Daphne's safe creative space. So happy to soak up some more of your wisdom and sparkle in here now x
Helloooo Betsy! So nice to hear from you and know you are here! It has been forever. Looking forward to soaking up your wisdom and sparkle here too! 💕🫶🏼
Exactly the reminder I needed. My version of not feeling like I've earned a "sick day" is to turn whatever I am doing into a job, complete with deadlines, obligations, and productivity quotas. It's one of the reasons I have not turned on a paywall on Substack. This is a place I come to share creatively and be inspired by the creations of others. I'm still learning how to stay present with the JOY of the creative life. Thank you so much. 🌿💚
Yeah, that productivity quota thing... It's drilled into so many us us.
I love what you write. It is lovely hearing of others who have an innate drive to create. I've been working on a huge blanket for well over a year, knitted and crocheted. No pattern, no stitch count, no rules just colour and textures I love. It looks like a landscape from above. I'm also crocheting my first granny square blanket. I also have my hook and yarn with me, it helps with my anxieties. I have autism and am my autistic younger daughter's full time carer. I also have a hexagon quilt cover to add wadding to and finish and I love to paint and sometimes sew or lino print. Lovely speaking to you.
Wow Beth! Sounds like you have some amazing projects in the works. I love that you just go for it, no rules! Yay you! Thank you for sharing your creative spark! 🫶🏼
I am having such a hard time right now. I know how it is and how important it is to make my art be my creative self, but I can’t make myself do it.
Kim. Things definitely can feel hard these days. Hopefully though you can find other creative ways to feed your soul. Maybe it's not art art but something else like gardening, good meal, some nice flowers. 🫶
I decided to start climbing my way out of the well today. A little study of the view from my window.
Sweet! maybe a nice cup of tea, good music, a little candle - an art date! Have fun. 💕
I feel this so deeply. As a woman who’s always felt the clock chasing her, justifying my rest, my pleasure, my joy and trying to be “productive” for the sake of my value… it’s been a journey discovering my value in the state of being. The innate being of me. Expressing my art as allowed me to find joy and giving my self permission to engage in this practice without earning it first is still a challenge but one worth fighting.
Thank you for this Ally. So much of our journey as we head into this third act of ours is finding this sense of value, right? It's a journey. I love that you are dipping into that so deeply. Feeling it! And that your creativity is a part of the process. Yummy!
I wish I had your Mom. She sounds awesome.
She was awesome! ❤️
Yes! I started crocheting amigurumi back in the fall. Then I decided to join Insta and make little reels and videos of my creations before I gave them away. Now I’m creating here. My mom used to give me 2 mental health days a semester. Days where I could stay home without being sick. Only requirement was that I had no tests or projects that day.
Valerie, how cute! I totally had to go look up what amigurumi was, but how sweet! And I love that you give them away. What a lovely gift to people, joyful things, yay! And wow, your mom sounds cool. I hope you got to have a bit yes day on those days!!