In the Midst of Winter, We Dream of the Sun...

Sometimes life can get us down. When it does, we have at least two choices: to wallow in our discontent... or to get up and just get on with it, hoping to find a bit of joy where we can. Surprisingly, option two — although initially requiring more energy to kickstart — also offers a lot more kickback on our investment.

The last two weeks have been difficult ones for our family as we continue to struggle through a time of crisis; but in the midst of the anxiety and the sadness, we have tried to instil joy in the small moments where it can shine:  a sunbeam through the icy window, a smile of trust and mutual support, those brief bursts of inspiration when creativity takes hold and pushes all the other worries aside for a while.

Along that theme, part of my self care during this stressful time has been to revive a long-ignored interest in fabric design, and to create a few cheerful and colourful patterns inspired by tropical islands and sun-soaked shores. I have even created a new shop on Spoonflower (castle_of_miranda) to share those images, and have ordered some sample swatches for myself.

It's late and I'm tired; it's still winter outside, but I think I can find summer in my heart again.

Changing the Game Plan

As much as I think that it's a good thing to establish a discipline for ourselves, I think it's also important to allow some flexibility and evolution in our creative work flow in order to keep it fresh.

I was talking to my family the other day about the irony of taking the time to blog about creativity if it eats up all of my productive free time that could be used for creating... and the suggestion that came back was that I should try converting the morning time (which is currently dedicated to writing this blog) to creative work time instead, and make some time at the end of the day to post some thoughts and updates. So starting tomorrow, that's the new game plan and we'll see how it goes...

In the meantime, I did nurture my creative spirit yesterday by attending the Common Threads Quilt Guild show in Ottawa. That was also a change of game plan because I had originally decided that the weekend was pretty busy with other things, and that—much as in the paragraph above—it would be more practical to devote whatever free time I had this weekend to working on existing projects. But when I woke up yesterday, the call of the road was still upon me... so I just jumped in the car and headed off on a little adventure.

The solitary road trip was a good decision; I delighted at the sight of the first trilliums blooming along the roadside, listened to classical music and enjoyed the sunshine and the wind in my hair.

Once I arrived in Ottawa, I wandered the aisles of the show in admiration for the fine and innovative work being done by a large and varied group of talented quilters. I browsed the vendors (with restraint) and came away with just a few treasures, some intended as gifts to others and some as gifts to myself. I also came home with lots of ideas, inspiration and new motivation, as well as the satisfaction and wellbeing that comes from feeding the spirit of creativity. 

Planning and self-discipline are important, but sometimes we have to be willing to change up the game plan and just follow that spirit to get to where we need to be next.

Dreaming in Technicolour

Do you ever wake up with an image imprinted on your brain? 

Do you feel an urgency about capturing those thoughts and images? And as your waking mind takes hold, do the images and thoughts start to fade and slip away, lose their bright and shiny lustre, sliding into muddy puddles of doubt? Do you question why they seemed so charming and insightful in the first place? 

Which is more real: the spark of the dream, or the dimming of the spark that comes with the dawn? I'd rather believe in the dream, but I often find myself limiting my actions and living within the duller and more mundane boundaries of "reality", losing some of my faith and excitement for the initial vision along the way.

Creative work does require a balance of graceful dreaming and gritty realism to come to fruition; we need to push and pull the boundaries of our perceptions, to capture those sparks (like the lightning harvesters in the movie "Stardust")... but we also to analyze and utilize the tools at hand (or invent new ones) to maintain or enhance the freshest and brightest aspects of the dream. We grind and polish the diamonds, refine the silver with fire and hammer the metal into shape. It's not magic, it's hard work... but when we do that work right, the work itself is invisible, and the focus remains entirely on the magic of the dream.

Hi ho, hi ho....