WELCOME TO WEEK 5!
Let’s Recap last week!
Every living thing that grows needs support. Whether it is vines on a trellis, or the support of the wolf pack, beings are not meant to exist in isolation or without systems around them. Unfortunately, capitalism, sexism, racism, (and all of the others awful isms out there) have made us believe that there is only one system out there that we can rely on or believe in. We are too quick to burnout, to falter, abandon or shame ourselves when these systems (quite rightly!) do not work for us. This is precisely why it is our duty as humans to redefine our systems and safety nets for ourselves…on our terms.
As we build these systems, grow our creativity, and work towards our larger goals & values, we will utilize these new systems as the basis of our trust. We trust that our support will hold us. We trust that we are enough. We trust we can do hard things. Without trust, we cannot possibly consider taking larger leaps, expanding, or moving towards the creative life we desire. We trust in play. We trust in our body. We trust in ourselves.
This week dear one, we will start to notice the newest buds on our branches. What has started sprouting? What do you notice?
Week 5- Unit 1
Let us be honest here, dear one. We will all fail. Not every time, no, there certainly will be an abundance of successes in our beautiful lives, but it is inevitable that we will experience failure from time to time in our lives. When I work in the garden, I must remind myself that the loss of one fruit does not mean the loss of the plant as a whole. I wake in the morning to find that slugs have munched my delicate basil leaves, that the tomato has experienced bottom-rot, or that a storm has tipped my pot over, causing one small eggplant to split from it’s shoot prior to maturation.
Of course, I understand that the loss of a tomato does not compare to creative loss. But what I would like to pull your attention to instead, is that idea that when we allow failure, allow the bruised fruit to fall away, we are re-routing nutrients, energy, and time into that which is working. It is natural practice to prune plants, to cut away the excess, and what better way to do so than let mother nature take action!
Similarly, we will look at your creativity as an act of “pruning”. We cannot expect to see a beautiful harvest without the loss of a few fruits- loss which helps to direct nutrients to what is working and THRIVING.
Let’s take a deeper look at creative failure. Have you ever heard of “writer’s block”? All creatives experience blocks at some point- but I am here to plant my feet firmly and state that I think being “blocked” is nonsense. Ah, I see you bristle! “But Alex, I have been blocked many times!” Yes, you may have felt blocked many times…but all a block truly is, is resistance towards failure.
In order to make the most glorious creative work possible, we must embrace failure. Want to get “unstuck” or “unblocked”? Make bad art. A lot of it. Allow the bruised fruit to fall away. Make in excess. Prune that which isn’t working. Make more bad art. Eventually you will see a tiny sprout of an idea, something small, almost invisible to your eyes, that is the beginning of something beautiful.
In all of my time in art school I think I only made 1-3 “good” pieces. I probably generated around 100 pieces in total, but the work that truly resonated with me was few and far between. This is not a failure on my talent as an artist, but rather, reflects the journey we all most take to continue the work of creation.
When we play, we let go of the outcome. Can failure become an act of play? Can we embrace the truly “awfulness” with a smile, a nod, and a sense of appreciation, knowing this is now making room for the most beautiful work to come?
Make bad art, friends. Anyway, who’s to say what “bad” is anyway? (Ah, but that’s a discussion for another day!)
PLAY PRACTICE & HW
Find 3 days in row that you can work on something creative. Consider making this your play practice for the day, or infusing your work with a greater sense of play, freedom, and levity! Make “bad” work. Give yourself permission to make something silly, trite, common, overdone, underdone- whatever “bad work” means to you. Do it again tomorrow. And again the next day. Each day, step back from your work and write down a list of 10 objective observations of what you see (“I see pink paint smeared everywhere. I see googly eyes. I see glitter.) and then 10 observations about how it makes you feel (“I feel silly for using the glitter, but it also kind of makes me feel joyful! I feel shame for creating a self portrait…who wants to look at me anyway?”)
At the end of your 3 day journey repeat the journaling process but with all 3 pieces. What did you notice? Did anything change?
WEEK 5- UNIT 2
As promised in earlier units, we now return to the concept of abundance. Shall we recap on the meaning of abunance?
Abundance comes from the latin root abundantia, meaning- ‘overflowing’, originally from the verb abundare, or abound: ‘overflow’, from ab- ‘from’ + undare ‘surge’ (from unda ‘a wave’).
HOW MAGICAL IS THAT?! ABUNDANCE IS THE OVERFLOW. THE SURGE OF A WAVE. THE RUSH OF FLOW. How do we find a flow in our lives that creates an overflow of emotions, support, creativity and absolutely radical joy???
Ok, maybe a few more related words in case abundance doesn’t work for you! Replace as necessary! -bounty-myriad-plenty-plethora-prosperity-ampleness-copiousness-plenitude-prosperousness-thriving-flourish-flow-overflow-swell-hum…(I could keep going but I won’t)
Ok! Onward! We have made it to the end of week 5, with but one week to go in our journey together. As we begin to notice the sprouting buds all around us, it is important to take stock of the incredible abundance in our creative gardens, and to know that we have the power to pull in abundance at anytime.
I have asked you during your creative journey to document your play practice, the creative work you have generated, and to keep a binder or journal to take notes in. Please take a moment to gather all of these materials together!
JOURNAL PROMPTS
Take a moment to look back through all of your notes and documents so far. As you do, please jot down the following…
What is there in excess? An emotion? An activity? What seems to reoccur?
What in your life is already prospering or thriving?
What activities brought in a surge (like a wave!) of joy?
What activities created an overflow of emotion?
What emotional resources do you already have in plenty?
What physical resources do you already have in plenty?
What activities helped increase your emotional resources?
What activities helped increase your physical resources?
What activities helped you to feel more generative, more abundant?
List everything you already have in abundance, physical or otherwise.
Now, take a moment to list out everything (literally, as much as you can!!) that you have succeed in during the past 5 weeks. This can be as small as getting through the day, eating breakfast, or as large as landing that new job.
Abundance is so much more than financial resources (but of course, includes this as well!). Abundance is all that we generate and birth into the world. Abundance is what we have in plenty. Love can be abundant. Support can be abundant. It is essential to see what you already have in abundance, and to take constant stock of what is new growth, and appreciate this new abundance that is forthcoming!
Contrary to popular belief, creativity and abundance are not oil/water. They are, in fact, one and the same. When we create, we generate. We birth new life into the world- we create abundance. We create more. We contribute to the world around us.
It is our natural state to be abundant, financially or otherwise. Everything living thing in this world is meant to be abundant, and as are you. When we can begin to realize that abundance is our natural state, it will open our lives up to further abundance, thus nourishing our lives and creating room for even more abundance.
A PRAYER FOR ABUNDANCE
Spirit and universe, see all that is within me.
I contain multitudes, I contain universes unseen.
Bless the largeness within, for it begs to burst forth.
I am a field of wildflowers, overflowing with color.
I am a sea teeming with life.
Just as there is abundance within, I attract abundance all around.
When I create, I am aligned with the generative world outside.
When I speak, my words are like honey, attracting the sweet abundance near and far.
Help me to see that my creative nature is the nature of the universe.
The more I create, the more I draw in.
Help me to see that is natural and right to live in abundance.
Just as the trees thrive in a forest, so will I thrive in abundance.
Just as the fish thrives in a school, so will I thrive in abundance.
Just as the rabbit thrives in a verdant field, so will I live in abundance.
When I create, I am aligned with the creator, the universe, and spirit.
It is my birthright to create.
I bless my creativity.
It is my birthright to receive abundance.
I bless my abundance.
I bless myself. I bless my heart.
LIVE CLASS
Today in class, we will be looking at the idea of sharing your creativity with the world. Some things are only meant for us, and others, are meant to be shared with the world.
What do you want to keep creatively? What do you want to share?
Please come to class with your answers to Unit 2 of this week’s HW. We will be discussing your play practice, your seed, and presenting your “harvest” in week 6 (next week, wow!)
See you soon!