For the past year or so I’ve been doing my best to get to a local art group on Friday mornings. It’s kind of my ‘self-care’ day where I do something just for me. It’s great! For most of my life I have loved art and wished I could be better at it. But any time I tried I didn’t like the results I got. I couldn’t paint or draw what was in my head. Or not well enough for my liking anyway. (Did I take the time to learn and practice and get better? Course not!) So I put art to the side and told myself I wasn’t creative enough. “Obviously it’s just not my thing.”
Have you ever heard of Black and White thinking before? Basically it means that if it’s not one thing it’s the opposite. If I can’t be excellent at something – I must be 'no good' at it. Being 'no good' at something is usually not ok so I might as well not do it all – just in case I might be seen as a failure – or not good enough. See how it works?
So, if you’re anything like I was, you might be going through life with all these things that you would have loved to do – or at least given a try; but you haven’t – because you tell yourself that you can’t do it, or you probably won’t be able to do it – so why bother trying at all?
Life becomes “safe” because you’ve got into the habit of just doing the things that you know you can do already.
Safe is comfortable.
Don’t get me wrong, a little bit of comfort is not a bad thing at all! However, if we are keeping ourselves comfortable because of internal beliefs that say something like “if I try and fail then I might not be good enough - a failure” then that’s a lot less ok!
Anyway, back to Art Group. I am learning that I am a Creator. Everything about me is Creative. Creativity is not at all confined to art – although art is an excellent outlet for creativity. Everything I put my hand to, I can do creatively. Because there is only one of me – only I can do the things I can do. Only I have the knowledge, background, experience and talent to do what I can do the way I can do it. Whatever I do is unique and creative because only I can do it like this. It’s the same for you – all of us!
At the very deepest level, I believe we are creators of our daily existence. I’m not meaning this in narcissistic self-deifying way. But actually, on another level we do have the ability to create life or death within our own lives – and in the world around us. Each day the thoughts I choose create a physical, emotional and behavioural reaction in me that affects everything I do. In every situation (good or not so good) that crosses my path I can choose how I react. Will I react out of fear, guilt, anxiety, shame or bitterness – or will I act with dignity and self-respect and love (for myself, others and the environment)? The way I choose to think and act not only affects my physical, emotional and spiritual state; it also affects everything around me. I can bring a little bit of light or a little bit of darkness to the world. Bit by bit we can influence our environment by just choosing to ‘Be’ a certain way.
So somehow, my going to art class has turned into me changing the world. (Maybe I am a little narcissistic after all!) I think what I’m getting at is that there is SO much more going on in our lives and this world than what we can see with our eyes. Modern science is just beginning to show us this. You just have to google neuroscience or particle physics or molecular biology to see just how intricately we are connected to one another and our world.
What I have decided is that I want to consciously impact my little slice of this planet for the better. I want others and the Earth to be better off for my presence here – rather than the other way around. I understand that I am a creative being regardless of whether I choose to acknowledge it or not – and I want to learn to create positive things with my words and actions.
So how do I do this? Well that's a much larger discussion isn't it!? I guess this blog is my invitation to you to enter into this discussion too. I'd love to hear your comments or reflections.
What shall we create today?
Lexi x