Temper Tantrums

We march!  We have sit-ins!  We boycott!  We speak out!  The first amendment gives us the right to speak our mind.  However, if we look at what’s currently going on in our culture, all of this is at the cost of personal safety.  People are threatening one another, walking into Subway Sandwich shops with guns strapped to their back.  We’ve lost the idea of sacrifice for the common good.

I was watching the news this morning and the meteorologist spoke about his father, a World War II veteran. He shared his father’s stories and the lessons he and the country learned during what we know now were horrific happenings.  He believes his father would be ashamed at the lack of sacrifice for the greater good.

 

It makes me wonder about can we get our feelings across without threats.  How would we create dialogue to resolve the common issues we all have, getting back to normal?  Is it possible to use creative means to release the energy so we’re not all ticking time bombs?

This brings me to the idea of the squeaky wheel gets the oil.  Have we become a culture whereby the only way to get anyone’s attention is to have temper tantrum?  We see it on all the news outlets, politicians (of both parties) crying foul. Businesses taking the law into their own hands violating local and state laws. We feel free to impose our, overwhelmingly white, male, wealthy point-of-view because it’s all about the money.

I’ve been following a lot of musicians who are writing songs as a means of uplifting the nation.  Songwriters/singers are recording music about the reality of our times as a means of letting others know they’re not alone.  Poets are writing about the state of the world.  As a collage/fiber artist my work has certainly included social justice narratives.  These are all ways for us to connect without going at each other’s throats as if we’re in the Hunger Games.

How do you think this will end?  What will you do differently, if anything, when life returns to “normal”?  Are you willing to sacrifice anything for the greater good?  Are there ways to express our frustration without a temper tantrum?  These are all questions we need to address or even if we can leave our houses, eat in restaurants, go to the gym, and attend concerts in stadiums, the rift is becoming so deep and wide, how will we heal?

For more artwork visit my Instagram page: @drfiber

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Growth…The New Frontier

I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts over the past year.  My library is mostly comprised of podcasts related to art, art and business, and spirituality/meditation.  I find myself listening to particular categories of podcasts depending on my activities. I listen to spiritual/meditation podcasts when I’m creating my daily collage (see my Instagram page @drfiber).  I listen to business-oriented podcasts when I’m organizing my office, setting up meetings and virtual retreats, and I listen to art podcasts when I’m working on an artistic endeavor.

When I find a new podcast for my library, I go back to the very beginning of the podcast and listen to the work in order.  I do this for two reasons, earlier work may represent foundation principles and newer work may be more evolved thoughts.  The other reason is the more we do something we develop mastery.  Interviewers get better, the questions get better, the impact of the podcast becomes stronger.

For me, podcasts have allowed me to mature in how I run my business and upped my confidence level in the art I create.  I’m a mental health/health humanities practitioner.  I’m continually looking for new and inventive ways for health professional both practicing and students to stretch their wings.  It doesn’t matter what field you’re in, learning new coping skills, increasing your joie de vivre, aligning your values with your work is important for survival.

During these uncertain times, how will you creatively protect your physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness?  What do you want to say but you haven’t been able to thus far?  If you could create anything knowing no one would see it or hear it what would it look like, feel like, sound like, taste like?  We all have creativity residing in our bodies and minds so let’s use it to capture and expand our resilient nature.

Reboot, Renew, Revitalize

Have you noticed the growing number of entertainment reboots currently making it to the big and small screen?  If you listen to the radio, you’ve not doubt heard Weezer’s remake of Toto’s Africa.  Broadway is always reviving musicals and plays with new spins.  I figured I would join the crowd and I’ve just become the president of Front Range Contemporary Quilters (www.artquilters.org) for the second time.   I was president ten years ago, and now it’s time for a reboot.

What is it about a reboot, or in my case, a new term that’s so appealing?  First and foremost, I’m familiar with the job.  There is a minimal learning curve.  I know when the newsletter article is due.  I’m familiar with the recruitment practices for membership. I understand the selection process for speakers.  On the flip side, over the past ten years, the membership has changed.  The use of technology has skyrocketed.  I’ve gotten older.

I believe any organization, business, even our own lives need revitalization on a regular basis. Boredom is one of the key components to sadness, lowered productivity, and the numbing of our emotional lives. It dulls our creativity, and as artists, creativity is our lifeline.  I’m not suggesting throwing the baby out with the bath water.  What we know has been working we keep.  Those ideas, practices, and themes not bringing joy to your life gets sent to the trash, literally and figuratively.

I’ve spent the last year regrouping and revitalizing my educational goals and my art practices. I recently completed a graduate certificate program in Health Humanities and Ethics.  This program gave me the energy and impetus to get focused about the art I want to create.  I’ve been in health and healing for thirty years.  Now, with further study I’ve become entrenched, engaged, and energized by the possibilities of the stories I want to tell.  I’m more focused.  My art has a sharper narrative.  My studio time is about storytelling and spiritual practice.  The two combined allow me to serve my community by speaking my truth about the gaps I witness in the world.

My creativity is a way for me to stay connected to my heart and soul.  If I hadn’t delved deeper into my interests, my passion, my purpose, I wouldn’t have achieved this new direction in art.  I feel renewed, I feel revitalized, and I feel reinvigorated.  I believe you will too!  Give it a try and let me know if I can help.  Renewing your vows to yourself improves your creative process!