What does it mean to be creative?

It’s Sunday morning. I’ve been home for a week and this morning, while enjoying my morning coffee I’ve been thinking about our last day on retreat and how it feels so far away. Did it even happen? What did I learn? What was it that I wanted to take home with me? I’m sure I could go on with more questions.

The very idea of taking an entire week to create art feels like such a luxury and being the over achiever that I am, I had some lofty ideas for what I wanted to explore. And my suitcase & backpack sure reflected some of those ideas as they were both extremely heavy.

I don’t have one discipline for creating and the idea of not having everything I think I’m going to need causes anxiety. What if the one thing I didn’t bring is the very thing I need. Then what?

It never dawned on me to consider one of the things I needed, I had no control over, the sun. Well, I had briefly considered it but thought it can’t possibly not be sunny the entire week. The sun did appear, but not in a way that would allow me to explore with solar dyes.

“Life happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

I googled the quote above, and, for me, it feels even more relevant when I switch the word ‘to’ to ‘for.’ Life happens for you…..

At the heart of being creative, is being open. Being open to what’s here, what’s happening, or not happening. Staying in the question. It’s much like being curious. If I’m curious then I’m not being judgemental. The two don’t co-exist.

I’m a head strong, push forward, get it done, kind of girl. Give me an accounting problem, I’m all over it. There’s nothing more fulfilling than putting a client’s books together, in a manner that is organized and accurate, and up to date.

I share that because to the head strong one in me, the results of the art retreat didn’t produce much of anything.

And yet….

As I sit here with my thoughts and recall the time spent listening to an exert being read from a book, or the conversation that followed, the beaches combed, the sharing of discoveries, being in community with women I respect and love, pushing myself physically. I’m not in the greatest shape right now. It occurs to me that this art retreat was exactly what it was meant to be. A space to be creative and open, just for the sake of being and nothing more.

I’m simplifying it and that’s okay for now. One thing I know for sure, after this retreat, is I want to live a creative life.

This week, my friend shared a short passage from ‘The Creative Habit’ by Twyla Tharp. The passage was about rituals. Naturally, I had bought the book years ago and had started to read it and highlight all the passages that spoke to me. Somehow it didn’t stick.

Tharp shares “It’s vital to establish some rituals – automatic but decisive patterns of behaviour – at the beginning of the creative process, when you are most at peril of turning back, chickening out, giving up, or going the wrong way.

I need, rather, I want to make time for movement, for creating, for doing nothing, for exploring, connecting, being curious. I love the idea of building a creative life full of rituals that support me in ways that don’t need explaining or tangible outcomes.

Being creative, living a creative life is so much more than producing art.

It’s exciting to be with this. What a gift and outcome I never could have anticipated. I can hardly wait for our retreat next year AND for every creative moment I can create in the time between.