Acts of Creativity Both Big and Small
A few weeks ago I stood in front of a room of about 40 young mothers, and some grandmothers and asked.
"How many of you consider yourselves creative?"
I think maybe 3 women raised their hands. Then I asked,
"How many of you created a life?"
And of course all the hands were raised. I guess it still blows my mind that women can create a life but still not consider themselves creative. Creating a life is the Big Kahuna of creative acts, but really everything we do, whether we create a life or not is a sacred creative act, if we treat it as such. If you are still not convinced you are creative, or say things like "I don't have a creative bone in my body." Then read on, I have an assignment for you. And also feel free to read my past article on my story of intentionally making everything I do a creative act (or at least I try to.)
But sometimes even I forget that small, mundane actions can be creative, and even some more large projects that I forget are creative acts. Sometimes it is the things that come naturally to me that I forget are creative, and my mind likes to tell me, if I am not stretching myself out of my creative comfort zone then I am not creating. And when I don't do the things that involve paint or sketching than I feel like something is missing. Because when I do those things they are a stretch for me and sometimes make me feel uncomfortable, I feel more connected to my spirit believe it or not, I feel more able to get out of my head and my own way, then when I do something that comes easily to me. But the truth is, when I remember that everything I do is a creative act, if I do it with that intention, with love, with connection, and treat it as sacred. That includes washing the dishes, which happens to be one of my favorite times of day to connect with my Inner Wisdom.
Last week was a short week for me, and then we left on Wednesday to go see family, and just got home last night.By last night I was finding myself irritable and cranky because I hadn't "created" in a week, not to mention my daily morning Divine connection practice was non-existent. But the reality is, just because I didn't put paint on a canvas, I did a lot of creating. I completed several writing projects, updated my website (which I consider sacred technology),created a few dishes for Thanksgiving, and created connections with those I love.These are all things that come very naturally to me, as opposed to painting and drawing, so I forget how creative I am actually being when I am writing, or cooking, or creating sacred space. But I had to remind myself that creating does not always involve making what we consider art, and spiritual practice doesn't always have to be difficult or uncomfortable. The thing is, I didn't do those things with setting an INTENT of creating, consider it a sacred act and so my spirit started rebelling. But when we do shift our perspective and our intent towards considering every act a sacred creative act, we come more into alignment with our true nature and what lies beneath the surface, than when we are just checking things off a to-do list.
So my assignment to you is two-fold, here is a list of acts I consider creative that are a part of my daily life; I would like you to add your own to it. Then, I would like you to do those acts with an intention that you are creating, and that these acts no matter how big or small are sacred. At the end of each day I would like you to journal, by starting with the sentence:
Today I intentionally created.....
And then sit in gratitude for all that you can and have created. And also know this. Resting is doing something.
For me the list of creative acts includes but is not limited to:
Painting and art journaling, collage
Writing in all its forms, including my curriculum, web and social media content
Connecting with beloveds
Creating sacred space and ritual for both my daily Divine and Inner Wisdom connection practice, and when I teach, and even when I do dishes and clean
Cooking a meal with love and intention
Listening to good music and dancing
Sleeping/rest
Creating a physical movement practice
Creating a loving home and space for my son to grow into who he is
Creating a vision, strategy and plan for my business which is cyclical not a one time thing
Creating a connection to nature and the elements
I am sure the list is even longer, but these are my main creative acts that I do almost daily. I would love to hear what you do that you consider creative acts. And besides journaling on and acknowledging the ones you do, for an extra challenge, I invite you to try something new that you have never done before.