Ritual...

 

In the last couple of months, I've made it a ritual to light a candle each time I take time to honor my creative muse. It feels like a pause before I begin to make something that I don't know what it will be, but that I'm willing to show up and let the process speak to me.

Amazed...

http://www.groveparkinn.com/gingerbread

Years ago I use to bake gingerbread and in all the years I baked, I never got up to the Grove Park Inn to see the Gingerbread competition. But I have since gone with a group of friends and it's a little different each year. And one thing that doesn't change, is the creativity that people of all ages use to decorate the gingerbread creations. It never fails to amaze me, the ideas that people come up with and I just love watching creative flourish and thrive year after year.

Discount...

When I stopped at the grocery store the other day and looked at my receipt, low and behold I got a discount for my wisdom. Who knew!!! I think it was the stores way of saying, " senior citizen" discount, only in a more creative way. Often I am not even asked because of my gray hair, just assumed, as I was this day. So I will take my 3.11 discount for all my years of gathered wisdom and say ~ thank you!

Do you Use...

 Do you use your college degree now; if you could do it over again would you attend college?

I can only answer this with the wisdom of hind site except the part of "do I use my college degree," and that answer would be no. If I know what I know now I would not attend college and I would set my creative spirit free, the one that I let myself and others keep locked up, imprisoned with all the rules, advise and pursuit of perfection. Going to college did one thing, it gave me the confidence that I did have the ability to learn ~ a feeling I lacked in grade school when I was told that I had a learning problem and was put in the "special class" with only a handful of other students. Everyone that walked by the room knew who was in there! And my mother never missed a chance to share this information. I do believe college is suited for some and some people it is not. I don't regret it, because like all past decisions, you can't change them, so I took what I liked from the experience and left the rest.

This is a cooperative blog that a friend and I are participating in together, so check out what she has to say about this question from her perspective http://gentlegull.blogspot.com/

Camera...

"Life is like a camera...

Focus on what's important. 

Capture the good times.

Develop from the negative, and if things don't work out,

take another shot."

When I was in my twenties, I went to a community college to get my associate degree in graphic arts ( not what I wanted, but that's another story, for another day), and I took photography as an elective and loved it. I even had high hopes of continuing on to finish my next two years in photography. But somewhere along the way I lost that and when I saw this quote it brought that feeling back. But it's something to thing about doing more of, as another creative outlet in my life. All my children have enjoyed taking pictures, and my oldest son use to build pin hole cameras and had a dark room in his home. 

Creative Process...

This Christmas bulb in the picture is something I've been working on for a couple of days now. It's not perfect but that is okay and that is an unusual feeling for me when it comes to creativity. I just decided to wing it and see what I came up with. My oldest son got married two months ago and I wanted to make something using the invitation. Over my many years around this planet, I usually would not even attempt this project because I thought I might fail so I would never even start. So I have to say I'm quite proud of myself. I good feeling to close out another Christmas, another year!

Road Trippin'...

Today my daughter and I decided to spend the day driving to Kernersville to visit the mobile http://www.sketchbookproject.com/where. It was so much fun! We both participated in the sketchbook project this past year and it was inspiring to see other peoples creative ideas from all over the globe. Plus it was surrounded by the beautiful Botanical Gardens http://www.cienerbotanicalgarden.org . All in all it was an awesome day.

Sketchbook...

http://www.sketchbookproject.com/projects/sketchbookproject

I'm excited to be thinking about what creative muse may spring onto the page when I get my sketchbook this year. I'm planning on ordering it soon, which will be nice instead of waiting until the last minute and then feeling the pressure to get it done on time. The first year only my daughter participated and then the next year we both did. I really didn't think I was going to do it again but I found myself looking forward to the creative process. I hope to remember to take pictures to share this time. 

Expression...

"I am carried into a bigger room of expression."

Words by: Tama J. Kieve

This is a place where I'm working on, allowing myself to be completely, uncensored (from my own mind) creative. To allow that creative muse to be "carried into a bigger room of expression," then my own limitations can go. When I see all that space I can either freak out or I can see possibilities. I feel everyday I'm a little closer to ~ being carried into a bigger room of expression! I read once about being "all in or all out," and today I'm ALL IN...