What's one small thing that keeps you grounded in your creative work?
The first thought is desire and curiosity. I’m usually out at least once a day in nature. I always have my phone for those serendipity moments. That is a compelling desire.
Also I love capturing those quirky, different view points something will show me. An angle of a leaf, a reflection on a plant, a shadow dancing on the wall.
Being photography is my main art form, ( nobody well known here, just a hobby) I have many opportunities to have my work displayed in different galleries. If they accept it that is. So that opportunity and those deadlines definitely keep me grounded!
All I can say is DITTO! After surgery…..check. Comfort eating…check. Food correction needed….check. Methods of self nurturing…same, same. I read this as I am sitting on my exercise bike trying to get my legs stronger so I can go back into the Core Work they gave me as rehab after breast cancer. I am with you and will keep looking forward to reading and Stretching (in every way) to go back to where I was…..but age & bounce-back ability worry me….I have past the one year since, mark and still haven’t bounced as I planned.
I realize in retrospect, that we can have too many “ good for you” or “recovery” treatments!
It took me months to see that even if two of my three or for appointments were supportive, health based alternatives, I wasn’t taking time to rest & recharge or just BE.
That was the way I detached from what my body was trying to do….so my advise to my self or others is Go Sit….Listen….then do….
I am the opposite of Lizzie here. Yes our winter feels out of rhythm here in the west. Earlier snow then flooding and now warmer than normal temps. Snow pack is at 35% percent of near it should be and really no snow in the forecast. I worry about what summer will bring with drought and fires.
Trying to get back into my workout routine so I can wash that worry away and get back to focusing on my creativity
Down here in Florida, we are having such dry weather, and we've had a few cold snaps but nothing long-lasting enough to kill off the excess bugs. The weather has been so wonky this year! Motion and creativity really go hand in hand.
Oh my - my life! Ok, I know that is broad, but hear me out. I retired four years ago. We tend to focus much more on the financial aspects of retirement than on the mental and emotional changes. I was driven since high school with goals - get good grades so I can go to college and be a vet, get good grades in college, but then finding out I do not have the skills to be a vet. Find something I am good at. Get my degree in that, have a plan for a secondary degree, and get a job after graduation. Work and be good at it. Marry, raise my daughter. I did all that. Now I am 64 and retired. To what? I am an older mom; there are no grandkids. I don't do the usual gardening and meet with friends for lunch. So, yeah, my life. It really needs adjustments. So much more to go on with, but you don't want to hear my mental health challenges, lol. Anyway, it's been a struggle to find a rhythm for the last phase of my life. It hurts.
Maureen, that is so powerful. We really do, don't we? I'm not technically retired but I deeply resonate with what you shared. When I had my brain injury, it was literally like watching life go on without me, and it took forever to find my footing again. In fact, I'm still finding it many days. I hear the pain in what you share. I am so very glad you are here. Your transparency in sharing is a gift. Thank you for being a part of our community here. It blesses me more than you know.
I laughed at myself so much reading this, here I am at my desk eating chocolate for breakfast and trying to do 6 things at once, while drinking tea, every IT guru in the world is having a panic attack incase I spill something .
you are so right sometimes to achieve you must first slow down an 'stop and smell the roses'
following the rhythm of nature, each season is sent for a purpose both in Nature and in our lives.
"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" Lao Tzu.
I had 3 or 4 things to consider. My marriage of 54 years. Still always adjusting, especially in our “Golden?” Years. 😳 Always my art room needs adjusting but never a rhythm. Started a walking challenge and I just can’t seem to get in the rhythm….I really need an adjustment.
…..and the winner is are doggy, Roscoe P. Coltrane, lived to be 15 years old. Left us last October. He had us in a rhythm and oh my what an adjustment with him gone. I did a little watercolor of him today. 😢
Bonnie, Roscoe sounds like he was a dear good boy. My little guy is turning 12 in March and there is part of me that dreads that day. He's my whole world. Grief hits so hard and is a rhythm disruptor at its core. Sending you so many hugs.
This winter feels out of rhythm. It has been the longest and dreariest. More days of clouds than sun.
Many days of below normal temps.
Snow! With 3 more snow episodes predicted .
I need sun. I need warmth.
As the days grow longer and hopefully with more sunshine, I will feel my rhythm return.
Until then? Buy tulips! Find a fragment of sunshine and relax in it. Take photos of nature. Listen to peppy music. Robins have been abundant in my yard as of late. I observe them and know it won’t be much longer!
Lizzy, I wish I could trade weathers with you. I am in Florida and I am so not ready for the scorching temps to return. I would happily have 4-6 weeks more of winter... hah. One day I will live in a part of the world that has 4 actual seasons again! Tulips sound amazing! Peppy music... love it!
I have been journaling about this chaos of the Fire Horse energy that has assaulted me. I even had prompts in my Spark & Scribble free online writing session last week. I ended up writing about how my inside energy feels like a tasmanian devil (of the cartoon sort) has taken over and is pin-balling around my energy centers. I then wanted a way to dialogue with this energy, so I made a SoulCollage® card and now I am tending to the fire energy instead of it burning out of control.
That sounds like such a powerful practice Tammy! I do something similar... often when my week feels most out of control and overwhelming it is because I have not been in dialog with it in my planner. So I go to my H. Cousin and doodle, write some quotes, reflect on my time and it it becomes so much more tending than reacting.
My whole routine is out of whack. As a caregiver of my hubby, my time is taken up with caring for him. I am determined tho to do better for myself this year. In fact, NURTURE is my "one word" for 2026. I am determined to nurture my health and my creativity daily.
Nurture is such a beautiful word Bev! I was the full-time caregiver for both my parents... I wound up creating a backpack with simple creative things I could do anywhere so that when one of them was in crisis, I could grab and go. It was far from perfect, but it did help. Cheering you on!
Thanks Michele. I keep a bag and a small box of papers by the table where I read and work. Makes it easier to do the small collages I am doing for #100Days. I like the idea of the backpack tho
My workspace needs attention and adjustment. My excuse is, it is too cold yet to sit there.....Even when I say to myself: when you are clearing and organizing it doesn't matter if it cold, it doesnot help.
Honestly, I have a spurt of energy and organize. Then I get tired and things pile up until I cannot manage it and then I organize again. I really get that.
Oh my gosh! I'm working on this now! I live alone,and I go on spurts of being good, planning, prepping and doing my menu so it is doable. Then I fall off a cliff. I have so many food issues that come with not having a stomach. And I hate having issues.
I laughed when I read the prompt, I spent Saturday and Sunday organizing my space and looking for ways to organize all of my supplies for ease of use. Currently, my space feels open and welcoming. I plan to make time to keep it this way. Here's to a sketch today. Cheers.
I'm so happy you were able to organize. For me, things feel overwhelming when they are not organized. I so get that! Admittedly, I am not the best at keeping it that way though.
What's one small thing that keeps you grounded in your creative work?
The first thought is desire and curiosity. I’m usually out at least once a day in nature. I always have my phone for those serendipity moments. That is a compelling desire.
Also I love capturing those quirky, different view points something will show me. An angle of a leaf, a reflection on a plant, a shadow dancing on the wall.
Being photography is my main art form, ( nobody well known here, just a hobby) I have many opportunities to have my work displayed in different galleries. If they accept it that is. So that opportunity and those deadlines definitely keep me grounded!
I LOVE the ideas of deadlines keeping you grounded. I have never thought of them like that. Thank you!
All I can say is DITTO! After surgery…..check. Comfort eating…check. Food correction needed….check. Methods of self nurturing…same, same. I read this as I am sitting on my exercise bike trying to get my legs stronger so I can go back into the Core Work they gave me as rehab after breast cancer. I am with you and will keep looking forward to reading and Stretching (in every way) to go back to where I was…..but age & bounce-back ability worry me….I have past the one year since, mark and still haven’t bounced as I planned.
I realize in retrospect, that we can have too many “ good for you” or “recovery” treatments!
It took me months to see that even if two of my three or for appointments were supportive, health based alternatives, I wasn’t taking time to rest & recharge or just BE.
That was the way I detached from what my body was trying to do….so my advise to my self or others is Go Sit….Listen….then do….
Pam there is such wisdom in what you share. Thank you!
Oh I hear you! I would not trade places! Sorry! Thank you for the lovely reply. I love what you’re doing and you are a sweet inspiration.
I am the opposite of Lizzie here. Yes our winter feels out of rhythm here in the west. Earlier snow then flooding and now warmer than normal temps. Snow pack is at 35% percent of near it should be and really no snow in the forecast. I worry about what summer will bring with drought and fires.
Trying to get back into my workout routine so I can wash that worry away and get back to focusing on my creativity
Down here in Florida, we are having such dry weather, and we've had a few cold snaps but nothing long-lasting enough to kill off the excess bugs. The weather has been so wonky this year! Motion and creativity really go hand in hand.
Oh my - my life! Ok, I know that is broad, but hear me out. I retired four years ago. We tend to focus much more on the financial aspects of retirement than on the mental and emotional changes. I was driven since high school with goals - get good grades so I can go to college and be a vet, get good grades in college, but then finding out I do not have the skills to be a vet. Find something I am good at. Get my degree in that, have a plan for a secondary degree, and get a job after graduation. Work and be good at it. Marry, raise my daughter. I did all that. Now I am 64 and retired. To what? I am an older mom; there are no grandkids. I don't do the usual gardening and meet with friends for lunch. So, yeah, my life. It really needs adjustments. So much more to go on with, but you don't want to hear my mental health challenges, lol. Anyway, it's been a struggle to find a rhythm for the last phase of my life. It hurts.
Maureen, that is so powerful. We really do, don't we? I'm not technically retired but I deeply resonate with what you shared. When I had my brain injury, it was literally like watching life go on without me, and it took forever to find my footing again. In fact, I'm still finding it many days. I hear the pain in what you share. I am so very glad you are here. Your transparency in sharing is a gift. Thank you for being a part of our community here. It blesses me more than you know.
Thank you so much! You inspire me, and I am grateful.
Life currently is out of rhythm. Like teaching we how to be able to dance in the moment. Even if it it out of ryhthm
That is such a beautiful picture, Naindra! I think if it seems out of rhythm, sometimes it just means we are dancing to a rhythm others can't see. 🫶🏻
I laughed at myself so much reading this, here I am at my desk eating chocolate for breakfast and trying to do 6 things at once, while drinking tea, every IT guru in the world is having a panic attack incase I spill something .
you are so right sometimes to achieve you must first slow down an 'stop and smell the roses'
following the rhythm of nature, each season is sent for a purpose both in Nature and in our lives.
"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished" Lao Tzu.
Audrey, now how did we eat the same thing for breakfast? 🤣 I usually have 3 windows and 50 tabs open between them. Love that Lao Tzu quote!
I had 3 or 4 things to consider. My marriage of 54 years. Still always adjusting, especially in our “Golden?” Years. 😳 Always my art room needs adjusting but never a rhythm. Started a walking challenge and I just can’t seem to get in the rhythm….I really need an adjustment.
…..and the winner is are doggy, Roscoe P. Coltrane, lived to be 15 years old. Left us last October. He had us in a rhythm and oh my what an adjustment with him gone. I did a little watercolor of him today. 😢
Bonnie, Roscoe sounds like he was a dear good boy. My little guy is turning 12 in March and there is part of me that dreads that day. He's my whole world. Grief hits so hard and is a rhythm disruptor at its core. Sending you so many hugs.
What feels out of rhythm?
This winter feels out of rhythm. It has been the longest and dreariest. More days of clouds than sun.
Many days of below normal temps.
Snow! With 3 more snow episodes predicted .
I need sun. I need warmth.
As the days grow longer and hopefully with more sunshine, I will feel my rhythm return.
Until then? Buy tulips! Find a fragment of sunshine and relax in it. Take photos of nature. Listen to peppy music. Robins have been abundant in my yard as of late. I observe them and know it won’t be much longer!
Lizzy, I wish I could trade weathers with you. I am in Florida and I am so not ready for the scorching temps to return. I would happily have 4-6 weeks more of winter... hah. One day I will live in a part of the world that has 4 actual seasons again! Tulips sound amazing! Peppy music... love it!
I have been journaling about this chaos of the Fire Horse energy that has assaulted me. I even had prompts in my Spark & Scribble free online writing session last week. I ended up writing about how my inside energy feels like a tasmanian devil (of the cartoon sort) has taken over and is pin-balling around my energy centers. I then wanted a way to dialogue with this energy, so I made a SoulCollage® card and now I am tending to the fire energy instead of it burning out of control.
That sounds like such a powerful practice Tammy! I do something similar... often when my week feels most out of control and overwhelming it is because I have not been in dialog with it in my planner. So I go to my H. Cousin and doodle, write some quotes, reflect on my time and it it becomes so much more tending than reacting.
What is H. Cousin? I forget about doodling. It doesn't come naturally to me but that is the perfect reason to do it when I'm feeling out of control!
My whole routine is out of whack. As a caregiver of my hubby, my time is taken up with caring for him. I am determined tho to do better for myself this year. In fact, NURTURE is my "one word" for 2026. I am determined to nurture my health and my creativity daily.
Nurture is such a beautiful word Bev! I was the full-time caregiver for both my parents... I wound up creating a backpack with simple creative things I could do anywhere so that when one of them was in crisis, I could grab and go. It was far from perfect, but it did help. Cheering you on!
Thanks Michele. I keep a bag and a small box of papers by the table where I read and work. Makes it easier to do the small collages I am doing for #100Days. I like the idea of the backpack tho
My workspace needs attention and adjustment. My excuse is, it is too cold yet to sit there.....Even when I say to myself: when you are clearing and organizing it doesn't matter if it cold, it doesnot help.
Honestly, I have a spurt of energy and organize. Then I get tired and things pile up until I cannot manage it and then I organize again. I really get that.
Oh my gosh! I'm working on this now! I live alone,and I go on spurts of being good, planning, prepping and doing my menu so it is doable. Then I fall off a cliff. I have so many food issues that come with not having a stomach. And I hate having issues.
Wow, Tammara that sounds like so much to manage! Menu prep- gah, I have got to get back on that myself.
I laughed when I read the prompt, I spent Saturday and Sunday organizing my space and looking for ways to organize all of my supplies for ease of use. Currently, my space feels open and welcoming. I plan to make time to keep it this way. Here's to a sketch today. Cheers.
I'm so happy you were able to organize. For me, things feel overwhelming when they are not organized. I so get that! Admittedly, I am not the best at keeping it that way though.