Snow white canvas waits
Void of experience
Crying out for life

I am here although not
What do you want from me?
How can I do this again?

Emptiness of the moment
Tears fall like rain
I am that canvas

Drowning in nothingness, no beginning nor end
The master holds out a brush dripping with my pain
"Just begin." she says.

Surrendering blindly...
Through my heart she holds my hand
Together we paint.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There are times when we all feel this emptiness and yet we move on... or we don’t. That is a choice we have to make on our own even though at times there seems to be no choice in sight.

You either move on or you move down. Nothing stands still. The choice you make in which direction to proceed creates momentum in that direction... one healing the other, not. The unfortunate thing is that when this emptiness comes, it can also wipe out our creative energy and we find ourselves standing still. Our creative expression is blocked. Such a shame, because this is the one thing that actually has the power to pull us through.

Imagination is powerful, expression of this imagination is even more so. It is our own inner power which is the only thing that can truly make a difference.

People come and go in our lives. Those that we thought would always be there to love us are suddenly taken away or they leave. Either way they are gone. And there you stand, once again alone. The truth is, you have only yourself to depend on when it comes right down to it. Nothing else and no one else will be there with you forever... only you will be.

“Life’s an awfully lonesome affair. You come into the world alone and you go out of the world alone yet it seems to me you are more alone while living than even going and coming.”
Emily Carr quote

If you are a religious or spiritual person you may believe in a master that will save you from this place and so you wait. But even if you do believe in this master you will never get to the point of receiving this salvation if you cannot open yourself to accepting this saving grace. Getting to this point means that WE must first take that initial step on our own... creating the momentum and the opportunity for change to occur.

My saving grace is my art and my creativity as a whole.
But just like everyone else when a loss occurs and I am feeling crushed by the weight of the world it is very difficult to open myself to this savior and create the momentum to access this mode of healing that I know works so well.

So what can get you to the point of opening up and accessing the healing that you need. The first step is to decide to do so. That’s it. Not a physical action, just a decision. Part of that decision comes from letting go just a little bit more than before... letting go of the perceived control that you think you may have over yourself.

When we are unable to control the outer circumstances of our lives the first thing that we try to do is control ourselves and usually the first step in this process means stopping... standing still. Fair enough, stopping after a crises can be a wise decision but if held for too long the momentum of stopping is created and strengthened and this is where we stay, clinging to and moving more deeply into this control of non-movement. But this control is not real and it is certainly not healthy if held on to for too long.

Self responsibility is real, choice is real, Control is not. Even if we think we are in control, the truth is we’re not. Out of the blue emotions will rise. Can we control them? Maybe by pushing them down? Not the greatest choice. I’ve tried it, trust me it doesn’t work very well and there are huge consequences to pay for this decision. Pushing down your emotions will only cause them to resurface in another area at another time. Thoughts will come to us in the same way, out of the blue and again pushing them away does not help... what we resist persists.

Creative expression in my opinion is the one true saving grace in my life. It’s the outlet for grief, anger, despair. It is a way to express this energy in a safe effective way... far more healing than directing these feelings toward someone else or even back at yourself by pushing them down or through negative self talk.

I create. That is my outlet, that is my savior, my confidante, my best friend and one true love that will never leave me. It is the channel for love that washes the pain from inside of me and opens me up to the higher truth of what really is... what really is the truth.

Today I thought that I’d share with you this weeks copy of my new Creative Inspiration email "Catch the Wave" that I offer through my site Kaizen Inspired Life.

Each week I offer a tool, approach or thought provoking question that can help you to get past the blocks that may be holding you back in the creative process. Sometimes these tools are very straightforward, but then other times they can be a little bit mysterious. But all are very effective in kick-starting the creative flow in ALL areas of your life. If you would like to continue to receive this email on a weekly basis feel free to drop by
http://KaizenInspiredLife.com Clicking on the blue link will bring you right there. You’ll find the sign up form located in the left column. While you’re there please feel free to drop me a line at the same time with any questions regarding any personal creative blocks that you may be experiencing or just say hi and let me know that you were there. I’d love to hear from you! Please be sure to include a full return email address if you’d like me to email you back. I’ll personally answer all questions as quickly as I can and may even use your block as a topic for one of my weekly emails so that others may benefit from your questions as well. NO WORRIES... confidentiality is guaranteed. I will never use any real names or any identifying remarks. Your privacy is safe with me.


So here you go... I hope you enjoy it.

All the very best to you in the Spirit of Creativity!
~Pam



CATCH THE WAVE...

What are you doing on a daily basis that could be made a little more creative?

Ok... yes, I admit that I’ve asked this question before in a previous email. You got me. BUT there is a very good reason why I’m repeating it now.
(besides... I didn’t actually choose to repeat it... IT chose to repeat itself)
And you know, I’ve got a hunch that it’ll come up again and again in different ways as the weeks go by. But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see about that though. You just never really know what to expect in this creative process.

Anyhow, back to the question.

What are you doing on a daily basis that could be made a little more creative?

Can you think of anything off the top of your head?

How about EVERYTHING!

If you contemplate this thought for a minute I think you’ll agree that anything and everything we do on a regular basis can either be seen and experienced as either:

1. Routine, boring, blah... done without any conscious thought, just going through the motions to get it done.

or

2. Embraced with conscious awareness in each step that we do... paying attention to how and especially WHY we’re doing it... putting a little more spunk and spirit into it, changing it up a bit, shaking up the norm and in turn revitalizing the whole!

Process or Product ??? What’s your choice?

I vote for process absolutely! The thing is, if you’re not enjoying something that you’re doing I think first you need to ask yourself why you’re doing it in the first place.
Is it really necessary to do it or do you just THINK that it is? Then, second if you choose to continue doing it (find that it is necessary to continue doing it), then how about asking yourself how you can make it a little more FUN, a little EASIER and more fulfilling.
If we can recognize the feeling of tapping into the Creative Spirit... Catching the Wave... in the day to day stuff, then when we get down to our "real" creative outlet (notice the quotation marks)... writing, painting, gardening, sculpting, music or whatever means of expression we engage in we can bring more of this Wave-like feeling into this area too. It will be far easier to allow that Creative Spirit to flow freely through us, thus breaking through a myriad of blocks that have been getting in our way.

THEN....... just watch those creative sparks begin to FLY!!! I’ll bet you’ll notice a huge revival in everything that you do!

Here’s a suggestion...

How about for this week we keep these questions in mind...

"Why am I doing this?"
"Do I want to? Do I need to?" or
"Do I just THINK that I need to be doing this?"
"How can I make this a little easier?"
"How can I make this a little more fun?"

and of course...

"What am I doing on a daily basis that could be made a little more creative?"

The brain looooooves questions. And even though it may seem as if nothing is happening on the outside, if these questions are asked repetitively on a daily basis, I’ll guarantee there will be lots happening on the inside. Before you know it synchronicity, revelations and many Aha moments are bound to present themselves to you! Really... they will! I’m not joking.

Don’t believe me?

GOOD!

Prove it to yourself!
TRY IT for a week... You’ll see!

Immersed in the wonderful stream of creative connection... enjoying the creative Process...
What could be better than that?

Till next week,
sending love in the Spirit of Creativity
~Pam

ps: If you liked this email and feel that someone else you know may enjoy it too, please feel free to pass it on... Share the tools!... You’ll find a link at the bottom to forward it to a friend.
Note: You are not automatically signing anyone up to this weekly email by forwarding it. They must do so themselves by either opting in on the forward or by signing up on my Website if they choose to.