Restore

While my word of the year is still, enjoy, new words are popping up all around me. These three words came from  a wonderful free, online gathering with Tara Mohr. Reclaim. Restore. Reimagine. I felt an instant connection with all three. 

And at first, I focused on reimagine as a way to get myself back on the creative track. But it didn’t seem to work. The harder I tried to ‘reimagine’ the further away things seemed. I journaled and doodled and crocheted, but my imagining got me nowhere. 

Giving in isn’t giving up. 

I knew what I had to do: give in. Trying and pushing and thinking was not the way to get my creative train moving. So I gave up. I stopped pushing. I gave up trying. And although, it’s really  hard for me to not do it, I didn’t think through everything around me. 

I stared out the window. I watched the snow fall and the sky change and the day move. And I got it. Just by looking across the room at the wall. 

What’s in the word restore?

 

The word REST. Yup. Duh. Hello? What I really needed to get my creative juices moving? REST! And then, to wait for the ORE, which is defined as the metal substance that lies within a rock. Gold is an example of an ore. What is gold? Precious metal that lies hidden within a rough, hard surface. And it takes time for it to change into gold. 

I had to laugh. And then, I reprinted the word like this: REST ore. 

Laughing and moving on. 

Sometimes, I just don’t see what’s right in front of me. But as I once told my kids when they were pointing out the obvious problem in a friends life: it’s always easy to see the forest for the trees in someone else’s forest. 

Suddenly, I had energy. I knew what I wanted to do next. So I got out my sandpaper and wax and got those Lily vases on my shelf ready for glazing. Then the next day, I woke up energized and ready to glaze.

Next thing I knew, the kiln was full and ready to fire. Voila. 

New Lily Vases.  New Luminaires.  New ‘Wish’ Bowls 

I’m glad I saw the trees, finally. And all it took, was time to RESTore. Try it and see for yourself. 

Enjoy: Experimenting

 

Entering this new year, I felt a little lost. How was I feeling now? Where did I want to go? What did I want to do. These are questions I haven’t looked into in the last few years because all I could focus on in those years was survival.  Maybe you feel the same. 

Taking an online workshop this week, I was able to see it all more clearly. Tara Mohr presented a free workshop called “Restore and Reimagine”. As I listened to the recording, I felt calmer and more centered. Hearing other women talk about how they were feeling in this new year, I felt less alone. 

Restore. Reclaim. 

I love words and I respect their power. Words can challenge and comfort, give insight and inspiration. When I pick my word of the year, I look for one that helps me move forward. I also look for phrases and quotes. I mix and match all this with sketches, small watercolors and pictures and make a collage on my studio bulletin board. And I put some up on my refrigerator. 

Phrases like: ‘take life back’ and ‘fresh start’ popped up. I wasn’t sure what they meant for me or my art, but I put them up anyway. The online workshop helped me see these phrases more clearly. What I really wanted was not to go back to my old life back but to restore and reclaim my life now. 

How do I do that? Reimagine. 

I had so many things fall apart around me. Closures. Shows. Work routines. Home disasters. I worked hard in and around it all. I knew what I had loved to do and make. But now it’s time to take stock. It’s time to ask questions and open up to new ideas. What do I want to create? Where do I want to be? What brings me enjoyment? 

One thing I enjoy is color. When I was 16 years old, I started doing watercolors and now I do clay. I wondered: what would happen if I did both? Is it possible? And how would it work? I let go of the questions and decided to let myself reimagine. 

Rolling clay, smooth and soft

Mixing watery sunset colors

Washing a sky 

Tilting and turning and dripping

Trees appear  

Enjoying the flow