from The Artist's Way: If you feel stuck in your life or in your art, few jump starts are more effective than a week of reading deprivation. No reading? That's right: no reading. For most artists, words are like tiny tranquilizers. We have a daily quota of media chat that we swallow up. Like greasy … Continue reading why reading deprivation
Writing
reading deprivation
I'm not allowed to read this week. I'm not supposed to read any books, newspapers, extraneous websites and emails -- anything. It's like someone told me to stop breathing. It's part of The Artist's Way and is supposed to, I guess, keep me from anesthetizing myself with other people's words. I can just hear some … Continue reading reading deprivation
Friendly Secrets
From P-O-Y: This Week's Topic : Friendly Secrets "A friend is one who knows us, but loves us anyway." ~ Jerome Cummings A friend truly has seen us at our very best and worse. They have seen us at our silliest and at our ugliest..... They know all those little things about us that we … Continue reading Friendly Secrets
Writing to Write
I am suffering from "what do I write about" anxiety. I joined a group that offers a weekly topic. This week's topic is, in essence, "if your friends were going to tell your secrets, which ones would they tell?" Jeez, I don't know. And if I want them to remain secrets, I'm not going to … Continue reading Writing to Write
The Reward for Attention
In "The Artist's Way," Julia Cameron says, "The quality of life is in proportion, always, to the capacity for delight. The capacity for delight is the gift of paying attention." She goes on to note, "The reward for attention is always healing." This is Nina's gift -- she gives me so much to pay attention … Continue reading The Reward for Attention
The Artist’s Way
I got everything done today except my morning pages. I think I'm just going to have to get up earlier to do them. I also decided tonight that I am emphatically NOT going to nag Jeff to do his. Either he does or he doesn't, but either way, it's up to him to make it … Continue reading The Artist’s Way
Nina Walks!
Nina took her first steps today, in the living room just as the symphony at the end of "Mr. Holland's Opus" swelled in the background. Could she have chosen a better soundtrack? My girl! At 10 1/2 months old, she beat the pants off both her sisters, who were well over a year old before … Continue reading Nina Walks!
Warning Sign
The other day while cleaning I came across one of Jasmine's journals. I've found several and like me at her age, Jasmine was fond of writing one or two entries in one journal and then getting another one. For me, I felt vaguely guilty about not keeping up with the daily writing I wanted to … Continue reading Warning Sign
Like the Rain
I'm missing Jasmine today. I found the bottle of rosemary essential oil we used to anoint her body prior to cremation and opened it to smell. Instantly I saw her small, cold little body in the parlor of the crematorium -- the last time I ever saw her whole. Rosemary used to be a scent … Continue reading Like the Rain
Meltdown
I have been avoiding my diary this weekend. Not sure why, but last night Jeff finally gave me The Look after again checking my diary to see if there was an update. "What do you care? You never leave any comments anyway!" The best offense is a good defense, I always say. "Why should I … Continue reading Meltdown
by the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea 