I’ve spoken to a number of people recently about how much they value creativity. As I’ve listened to them explain what that looks like for them, I’ve noticed a feeling of wonder, calm, and inspiration. I’ve noticed myself, during such interactions, vowing to do more creative things as well.
Only the other day I was listening to someone talk about carving out space for their creativity when I thought ‘I shall write a short story this evening.’ I don’t actually think, beyond childhood, I’ve ever written a short story, so I’ve no idea where that came from, but the thought was there along with a little fizz of excitement.
And then that evening came, and no short story was written. Nothing came from my mind onto a page. In fact, I didn’t even get in front of a page in order to begin the process. I just prioritised other, less exciting, not very important things instead.
Now I am not berating myself here, the gremlins haven’t got in to tell me how terrible I am for not writing a story. But I am very curious about how easily I let creative endeavours die before they’ve even begun. I am pretty sure it’s because I tell myself the story that other things are more important, or perhaps even: ‘if it isn’t usable or maybe even sellable (hello capitalism) then what’s the point?’
And so rarely do I actually carve out the time for creativity.
But really, I would like to to re-write that inner story. Because creativity is enormously important. Just for it’s own sake. Creativity is vital for our sense of aliveness, it’s a way for us to make sense of the world. Creativity is an expression of how we feel, or a way to organise some confusion or fog around a situation. Creativity connects us to something greater than ourselves. And it’s a way of communicating, should we want others to see what we create, our thoughts and ideas to people around us.
Creativity is an absolute priority.
So I am committing here, and I invite you to too if you feel called, to have more creativity in your life, to re-frame the story and make time for creativity. This evening I shall try again to write a short story, buoyed by this blog, and hopefully it will set off a chain reaction of creative activities for months and years to come.
Here’s to prioritising expression and creation in order to make sense of ourselves and the world around us.
With love as always, Hannah and Team Bird
Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash