Creativity is meant to make you happy right?  Well I nearly ran out of the building crying.

I’ve recently gone to a couple of painting workshops, with no goal to do a masterpiece or to “display” my work. I had put it off for years with the excuse “this is just not my type of creativity”. The truth was I knew it would put me out of my comfort zone big time and the thought overwhelmed me.

Yes, it was challenging when my logical brain asserted itself. At one point I had 6 people telling me what I should do and quite frankly I was tempted to run out of the building crying.

One of the joys of mindfulness is you are aware of your emotions and what is causing them.  Some deep breaths quelled the burgeoning tears, I spoke kindly to myself and continued on.  I am surprised how quickly this dread turned to joy and using my imagination in this way was stimulating.  And Viola! I now have two paintings.…. I know they are not masterpieces – two paintings does not a master make.  I include them below as an act of vulnerability and as a manifestation of my joy.

Abandoning my pre-conceived ideas of what I can and can’t do has a had long-term benefit. Creativity has indeed nourished my soul.

I am excited for my next classes….

N.B. Play is not trivial; it’s a basic biological drive as critical to our health as sleep or food. That’s the word from Stuart Brown, author of the new book Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul   

 

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