I was talking to an intuitive friend and expressing to her how lost I’ve felt lately. The pandemic, the failing economy, the social unrest, the political turmoil, and my own business downturn are always on my mind and weigh heavily on my heart. I’ve thought of myself as a driver. Someone who jumps in and tries to “fix” things that have gone wrong. Other people seem to think of me that way, too. But lately, I can’t summon the energy to do much more than just get through each day.
I’ve also always been a planner, but how do you plan when things are changing daily? I’m a service provider, but how do you serve when the needs are so high and so unpredictable? And, of course, I’m a creative, but how do you create when your energy has left you?
My friend said, “Something as deep and powerful as what you’re going through now doesn’t lend itself to action.” That stopped me in my tracks. Up to this point, I thought the answer to everything was action. Now it seems the answer, for me anyway, is inaction. It’s thinking, and feeling, and reading, and contemplating, and reimagining. It’s that last part that excites me, though it still feels like I’m under water and reaching toward the light at the surface. But at least I can still see the light.
I know some of you are feeling busier and more overwhelmed than ever. And some are feeling adrift, like me. Some of you are working on new projects. Some are simply letting yourselves be. But all of us are transforming, like it or not. In fact, the whole planet is transforming, so it might be helpful to remember this:
We tend to think of creativity as something that “results” in a new product or method or program or work of art. But sometimes creativity just means opening space for new ideas to form or for the things that are already inside us to expand. “All your skills, talents, and insights are still with you,” my friend said. “Trust that. They will be there when you need them.”
Be your creative self, whatever that looks like now.
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