"We are all wanderers on this earth...our hearts are full of wonder, and our souls are deep with dreams." ~ Gypsy proverb

Monday, January 3, 2011

"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun." ~ Mary Lou Cook

Not too long ago, I thought creativity was only a gift for the gifted. Creatives are those who bring emotion, appreciation, invention, awe, newness and inspiration to the whole world using something that comes from within. I am in awe of creatives and in my mind, creativity was something exclusive to them, since I didn't have any such gift. Creativity remained something to dabble with, but only "every now and then" or "when I have free time". Many times I would believe that taking the time to be creative was a "luxury" I couldn't afford anyway, since it would be a profitless pursuit. Blecht. How close minded I have been. Creativity is not about making money, not at the core. Creativity is about setting something from the inside, free.

Something happens when I express myself creatively, something wonderful, beautiful, and freeing.  I know for lifelong creatives, like my husband, frustration is also a huge part of it too, especially if expectations are placed on that ability to create. Money has a way of changing things doesn't it. Perhaps it is easier for me in that sense, as I have no expectations for mine. Creativity is about discovering passion. Creativity is the courage to express myself however I feel like I need to. It is the follow through. Creativity is about creating something regardless of any fear of being judged, or being imperfect at it. Creativity means just having the abandon to try, do, make, create whatever the hell I want, because my insides are screaming to come to the outside, and because it feels good. I believe for many, creativity becomes a vital, living breathing thing that must be expressed.

I think that is why I travel these web pages and blogs in childlike wonder of people who express their creativity so honestly and openly. These people have understood what creativity was all about long before I did. I love the words, the pictures, the stories, the artwork. I never want to take these things for granted. The desire to create and be creative, to do or make something, not just emits courage and inspires--being creative produces a better part of me in the process. It's not about what it looks like, and it's not about how good I am or get, it's about what I discover about myself and want for myself in the process. I know this isn't profound, but it has been life-changing for me.

2 comments:

  1. well said! and i love those chunky granny squares!

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  2. Sometimes I feel creative (as in coming up with something new), and sometimes I don't. But all those things your wrote about creativity - they do apply to my life.
    That's how I look at my life with my children - passion, no fear of judgment, create something wonderful - however the hell we want. :)

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“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
~ George Bernard Shaw