How do You express Your Creativity?

I write, I cook, I crochet. I'd like to know how others express their creativity.

I feel that finding outlets for creativity can lead to a more fulfilling life in a variety of ways, ranging from mental health to spirituality to employment. Many people who work in demanding jobs find release in following their creative inclinations.

Some people take shopping to creative lengths and indulge in creative retail therapy, others paint, or sculpt. We are all different, we all have our own methods.

So what form does your creativity take?

Artworks? Craft? Writing and Poetry?

Here's your chance to tell others about the way you let your creativity loose!

Let your mind look away

I wrote three poems last night - two haiku and a longer free verse poem. The first haiku I'd been thinking about for a couple of hours as I fed the dogs, my husband son and myself, and then drove off to last night's workshop, so the writing of it was planned in a way.

The other haiku was written quickly, in response to the writing workshop activity I was supposed to be doing with a partner - on the night it was not supposed to be a haiku the participants were supposed to be writing, but some ideas for a story. My partner wrote some useful notes and I wrote a haiku on the topic (sort of).

The free verse poem is a follow up to a conversation I'd had a couple of days earlier, and also linked in nicely with another poem I had written a month or so ago.

So? This is meant to be about creativity, not poetry. What's my point? you may ask.

My point is that if you stop watching your brain intently, you may come up with sometimes startlingly creative things. The first of my haiku, penned in a rush because I didn't have much time to spare, is every bit as good as haiku I've spent much longer over.

The second haiku was an amusing take on the exercise my partner and I were meant to be doing, and made me smile, even if the tutor wasn't as amused.

The free verse poem has some fine lines in it, and once I've had a chance to think further about it (or sleep on it), I think it will be a fine poem.

I was not thinking hard about the poetry I was doing and my mind was thinking about the set exercise we were doing as well as subconsciously thinking about the poems. My point is that when you look away, the subconscious mind can sneak out and do its work - you can be surprised and delighted at what you can come up with if the look away for a little while.

Creative thinking

Having a creative mindset can lead you to amazing paths to travel. If you are stuck in a rut, it's time to get out and get creative.

How? you ask? Well, if your life has lost it's zing, it may be the time to have a re-think about your thing. We all have our own thing that we do. I write, that's how I find my creativity taking off.

Others have their own thing. Sometimes when my writing isn't working for me I might try a little crochet, and I find the mindless repetition of it sets my mind going in creative directions again. I've talked about crochet and creativity elsewhere, and others have found my thoughts on that interesting.

Sometimes just changing simple things can lead the mind somewhere else. If you always go to work by car, why not give public transport. Or if you always visit the shops at lunchtime, why not try a museum for a change.

Getting out of ruts can be that simple, and the rewards can be immense. If you find an interesting thought, why not follow it for as long as you can. It might lead you to a dead end, but it might lead you to a wonderful new thing!

You might find the way challenging, but so often, challenges can help you to grow in fantastic new ways.

Be prepared to try things, be prepared to change your mind, be prepared to go where your creativity tells you to go.

Innate good nature of humans

Reading the stories about the wonderful things people are doing for those hit hard by the bushfires in Victoria strengthens my feeling about most normal human beings being innately good.

Of course, there are sick people who do evil things, as appears to have happened recently. Only a truly sick person would light a fire on a day like that day when the bushfires started. I don't think there's any other way to think of those who commit crimes like this, apart from them being sick. They are lacking something basic in their nature, that doesn't make them see the madness of their actions.

I know a lot of people are talking about committing terrible acts of violence against these arsonists, if they are caught, but I can't see what good that would do. Evil act punished by another evil act, seems like, at best hypocrisy. At worst, well, more of the same is the best interpretation you could put on it, as far as I can see. I don't think that is the way for the bushfire victims to obtain 'closure'.

I know lots of others don't see these sorts of things the way I do. Many take an Old Testament 'Eye for an eye' view, but I don't see anything good at all in the Old Testament. It's made up of blokes doing bad things to each other and God carrying on like a mad thing.

I prefer Jesus, turning the other cheek, and other milder ways of dealing with unpleasantness. Is my way the right way? I have no idea, but I know that I feel like I am living on a higher level of spirituality that a lot of fire and brimstone Christians.

I am committed to trying to always be good, and do the right thing. I am an unbeliever though in Christianity, who believes in the wisdom of Mother Nature and the sanctity of the Earth. I firmly feel that, no matter what we do, the Earth will survive, in some way. I don't think mankind will last anywhere near as long as the Earth will, and I'm wondering how long the cockroaches will survive when most of the Earth is covered with water, it that's the way things might go.

Time will tell, and I know I won't be there when it all ends.

How to get comments

I wish I knew the answer to this one. I love leaving comments, and getting involved in discussions on blogs, but I don't know the answer to the question of 'How do you get people to comment?'

If you have the answers, please, feel free to leave a comment here. If you leave me details, I'll check out your blog and leave comments there.

Of course it would be best if your blog is about something that interests me, but hey! I'm a writer, just about everything interests me. Creative people seem to have a huge range of things they're interested in.

I'm interested in dogs, poetry and any other sort of creative writing. I'm interested in family, healthy eating, politics, nature, creativity, story ideas, poetic forms, life, I could go on and on.

I'm not a Christian, I guess I'm agnostic rather than an atheist, I believe Mother Nature gives me my spiritual feelings. I believe in the innate goodness of humans, but I don't believe Christianity necessarily gives that innate goodness, I feel it comes from have inner goodness from living a thinking life.

I believe family and friends bring true meaning to life. I am now stepping off that soap box. It's late and I have to go to bed , ha, ha.

Get obsessed and stay obsessed

I remember reading a John Irving book, many, many moons ago - it may have been The Hotel New Hampshire. There were many stand out characters in that book, if that's which of his books it was.

The character that has had the most impact on me was not one of the major characters, but an important character never the less.

That character was Coach Bob. As I said, I'm not certain which book it actually was, but one thing stuck in my mind then, and is stuck in my mind still. The line of Coach Bob's that is still sitting there in my mind is what he used to say to the main character.

"You've got to get obsessed and stay obsessed!"

That's how I feel about my writing now. I'm obsessed about writing (my own and the work of others) and I'm staying obsessed. I will always be a poet, writer, and blogger and I will always help others with their own writing. It's my obsession.

I have run poetry competitions for the past five years, and I can't see anything that would stop me from running one poetry competition a year for many more years to come. Even if the money dried up, I would still continue in some way, because I am obsessed.

I hope you are able to spend some time in your life doing something you are obsessed about, whether it's looking after your kids, fixing up old cars or water colour painting, we all should keep a space in our life for an obsession.

I don't mean crazy mad stalking people or anything like that, but just something you care passionately about. It might be a football team, a person, but we all need something that brings meaning to our lives.

Take a look at the photo at the bottom of this page, that's one obsessed creature!

Creating a new person/persona

I was just fiddling with this website, and shifted my photo to a different spot(underneath my blog entries), and it got me thinking. Always dangerous, me thinking, you never know what might happen!

Anyway, it occurred to me that I've created a new persona for myself. I had an idea of myself being a thinner person, and hey presto! one year later, here I am, 15 kilos lighter and wearing size ten jeans.

Am I a different person because of my weight loss? No, not really, except I feel superior to others because I've done what do many people can't or won't do. But I feel sorry for people who want to lose weight but can't manage to do it. I've got lots of thoughts on this matter, and I reckon it's a complex issue.

The only thing I know is what worked for me, but I firmly believe that my method could work for other people too. I've written an ebook "How to lose weight and keep it Off" about it and it's for sale at a low price here

Basically, I think the problem lots of people have is they don't take a long-term view on the matter. It takes a long time for your waist to go from think to thick. It's going to take a long time for it to go from thick to thin. Weight loss is not about 'going on a diet' it is about changing your lifestyle.

I lost weight by paying attention to my body. Now, I don't eat if I'm not hungry, and I make better choices on what I eat. There are no excuses for scoffing a 'family' sized block of chocolate or a big packet of chips. You know that food will end up on your bum or tum.

Going on a diet implies going off a diet. Eating better food for the rest of your life doesn't mean never pigging out, it just means eating good food most of the time. And if you can get some exercise in there too, that's great.

I've done it, you can too. I'd love to have a chat about my journey and yours. Make a comment and we can talk. I've got lots of good food ideas!