Two resounding messages from my last year or so of work with Dio Miranda is the importance of both taking time to create and taking time to do nothing. It's is so easy to spend every waking moment multi-tasking and squeezing in more productivity, and yet so many beautiful realizations come in the quiet times.
When I first considered whether or not I was taking time to be creative, my answer was "yes"! After all, my work for the last four years has been about creating a business from the ground up with my sister. In the last two years, our creative work has specifically been about bringing to life the vision we have for the school and its grounds. As a woman-owned business, we have had the freedom to create our workplace. Though it has occupied a big piece of my life, this creative work associated with the school has probably not met all of my needs on a personal level. Is it important to find a way to be creative outside of "work"? I'm sure it is. I don't sew, knit, paint, or draw as a form of relaxation, though I want to learn all of these things. I am anxious to begin dipping my toe into this handwork when Janie and I begin Lifeways training this summer at the Austin Waldorf School. In the meantime, I suppose my greatest creative act is always working to make a home that is happy, (pretty) clean, and bright where wholesome, healthy food is abundant.
Now dreaming and taking time to do nothing, that's not as hard for me once the prescription is ordered! My greatest challenge, like all moms, is finding a few minutes of unadulterated slothfulness and not feeling guilty for them.
These are some of the things that I dream about and read about in my do-nothing times:
travelling and living abroad some day, somehow; taking steps to be debt free and able to retire while I'm still young; yurts; rvs, specifically airstreams and big travel trailers that I can park somewhere for an escape; simple, magnificent, seasonal food; one or two seasonal crafts to do with my children each month; how to swing a kettlebell; natural play grounds; working efficiently and not reinventing the wheel (4 Hour Work Week); reading Dr. Mercola's health website; looking at magazines and ripping out pictures for my idea binder; reading about grain-free eating and anything else I think is good for me like having a big garden and building an outdoor oven; reading all the blogs that I have links to on this blog; and, facebook (why, why?)
Do you take time to be creative? Do you take time to do nothing?
