Monday, February 25, 2013

Shedding Light

"Your days are short here; this is the last of your springs. And now in the serenity and quiet of tis lovely place, touch the depths of truth, feel the hem of Heaven. You will go away with old, good friends. And don't forget when you leave why you came." Adlai E. Stevenson

I was thinking about quiet and serenity this morning. I just finished reading "A Creative Companion" by Sark, a book that has lived on my book shelf, barely touched, for twenty years. I purchased it at the Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite and tomorrow we're going to Yosemite for three days. Don't you love serendipitous moments! She has a quote by Frederick Frank where he says "A non-creative environment is one that constantly bombards us, overloads our switchboard with noise and vitriol.... Find a way of "inscape" of "centering,"the same environment becomes creative again."

Saturday and most of Sunday I turned off my computer and low and behold, blessed quiet and a slow down of incoming thoughts made me feel centered and quiet and creative inside. But when I turned it back on, I was like a savage who hadn't eaten for days. I've got to continue to work on this! I read messages and answered messages and then searched for blogs I hadn't read and then there was Facebook. Not much quiet after all that! Don't even think about centering on drawing with all that noise and clutter. All of which brought me to Adlai and the part of this quote I like,".... don't forget when you leave why you came." I'm pasting this to my computer and on my studio desk.

Why do we come to spend time painting or drawing or writing or reading or being alone or for that matter going to Facebook? I'm always quite clear about why I sit down to write first thing in the morning: to set the tone for my day and clean up my act if that's the way it seems to be going. I come to writing to find out who I am and if the me that shows up isn't someone I want to deal with, I find that out too. I'm not always so clear about why I sit down to draw. Is it to create something joyfully new or to prove I can't create what I want. Today when I start drawing, I'll ask the question: why have I come to do this today. It's a way of inscape.

Baruch ata adonai...thank you for this new thought, this new way of entering whatever I do. Today may I remember to ask myself why I've come to eat for example or to call a friend or to draw. I think If I know why I've come, I will be easier on myself and have more enjoyment in whatever I do. Amen

2 comments:

  1. I like to try to keep my computer off until after lunch, and to go one day during the whole weekend without turning it on. But...it doesn't always happen. I know why I come to the computer, and I feel like what I do is important or necessary there. I use the computer to research, learn and connect with people. There are, however still times that I waste time there...

    I draw because it feeds my soul and brings me joy.

    I just recently got back into journaling,and I need that to bring me peace and strength and grounding.

    Inscape is so important for us highly sensitive types!

    I think I will ask myself why I have come to each activity. I think it's a great habit to get into. :-)

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  2. That would be a great question for me to answer each time I turn my computer on...why have I come here? I can so easily get sucked in and distracted by all that is available online, yet the aftermath of it so often feels empty. "This is the last of your springs" really resonates for me in that quote. Each spring is so precious, another chance to experience the earth in renewal.

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