Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Notice
I am slowly making more progress on the art journal page that I shared yesterday. I found myself wanting to add some hand-stitching to the piece (not an easy task since hand-stitching is not something I have done a lot of). Of course I then decided I wanted to include French knots :) So, off to YouTube I went to find a video on how to make them. I'm not consistent yet, but it has been fun learning. I've also begun to take more notice at the thoughts that bubble up as I am working on this page. Yes, the usual critic is rearing his ugly head again - asking me why I am spending time on this page - asking me "What's the point?" And then I also notice what was on the radio when I was driving home from swimming this morning. Two stories - one right after the other. One was about a 17-year old girl who had become addicted to marijuana and how it had impacted her life. She was in a program at school that was built to help teens through this addiction and one of the things she felt was helping her a lot was art. She talked about how making art provided a distraction for her - distraction from negative thoughts and cravings. She mentioned how fascinated she was right now with roses and drawing them - how the petals fold in so many different ways. Next was a story about teens in Lyons, Colorado who had experienced the devastation of flooding last year. With the assistance of a few adults, they put together a book of photos about their experience. Using art to express and to heal. So yes, I notice what the Universe is saying in response to my inner critic. Why do I create art? Why do I spend time stitching French knots to a page? Because it allows my mind to focus on something positive and distracts me (if I can allow the inner critic's thoughts to just pass by) from negative thinking. It also provides me an opportunity to express myself and to heal myself. And ultimately, I hope that maybe it will inspire you to do the same.
