I discuss in my book ‘Reclaiming Feminine Wisdom’ how creativity has begun to flow in abundance after I began my healing journey. This is an intuitive painting that I did recently to connect to my love of colour and art. Here is an extract from my book…
“I have mentioned previously how my creativity has begun to flow in abundance. Creativity in any of the arts is renowned for its therapeutic benefits. I feel that moving out of my logical and rational mind into the creative and intuitive space has brought much happiness and been integral to healing. There is no surprise that we often call it the “healing arts.” I began thinking about how I used to love painting when I was young, as most of us do when we are children. I had painted a picture in primary school that had been part of a school art competition at the village fete. It turned out that there was an artist there who owned a gallery and he ended up buying the painting I had created and hung it up in his gallery. I still have the photo of it in his gallery that he gave to my parents as he told them I should “keep painting.” I did for a while because I loved it, but eventually I gave up as my practical logical side told me that it wouldn’t lead me anywhere. I hadn’t thought to keep going because I enjoyed it. Our conditioning can tell us that there are more important things than doing something purely for the love of it. There were times throughout my life when I felt the urge to paint again and I would for a while, but then I allowed other aspects of my life to take over.
I was also incredibly lucky that most of my twenties were spent doing creative projects involving theatre, dance or singing. Being on stage is also when I hit that sense of flow. I feel that when we are in this sense of flow we are tapping into our soul gifts.
Where are you currently creative in your life? Did you love being creative in the past?
If you feel you do not have time to be creative as you are too busy at work, or are a mum like me, or a single parent without much help, think about how you can reframe your experience to connect to creativity. You could do this through cooking a meal or painting with your kids; it does not have to be a separate practice. If you have children, then creating with them can be so much fun. They do not hold back from their creative essence. Our whole lives we are creating, whether in our jobs or in gardening or, in a larger sense, the way we live our lives.
If you are completely limited with time, then set the intention to notice how you can add creative touches to your day. How could you include more creativity in your work, for example? What could you do to make cooking dinner feel like an enjoyable creative process rather than a chore?
Is there anything that you could swap in your day to pursue a creative project instead? If you are a mum and usually watch television when the kids are asleep, could you do some painting or write your book? Which areas of creativity make you feel alive and in flow with the universe?
You may not see yourself as creative but we are all creative, we create our lives by our thoughts and the choices we make.
The joy of creativity is in that sense of play which we often lose as adults when responsibilities weigh heavily on our shoulders. We can still find many ways to keep that playful essence alive when we set the intention to connect to it. Many creatives feel connected to their soul or higher purpose when they are creating in flow with what lights them up. Think about what you loved doing as a child and start playing with it again. Your inner child will reward you for it with happiness.”