Staying Creative in January
Plus A Short, Silly Snow Day Story
Of course there is a mouse in our apartment. There’s a blizzard and the roads are closed and the hardware store across the street is closed. We can’t buy traps and it’s beyond cold outside. This mouse is ingenious. It’s the perfect time to invade our abode and find some warmth and maybe some shortbread cookie crumbs.
But what the mouse didn’t think about is that we, too, will be in the apartment all day.
Mice don’t keep track of the KDOT emergency alerts and the closing of highways. We’re completely homebound, giving us time to try and trap him after asking Reddit and Google what we can do about this (admittedly, incredibly adorable) intruder.
He’s a bold one, running right under the kitchen table where I’m reading. Or around and across the living room floor as we watch TV. Sneaking peeks at us from behind the entertainment center. Then cautiously stepping out to stare at us. But his time will come, of course. We just need to be patient.
Turns out, duct tape can be used in a pinch to catch a little guy. Strung along the same paths we’ve watched him run all day (taunting us, no doubt).
We hear a tiny commotion in the kitchen. And aha! He’s caught, poor thing. But there’s no time for real sympathy.
My partner scoops up the duct tape and carries it to the front door as the little mouse struggles. But with a quick tug on the tape: pop! off he goes, flying into the snow on the porch with well-wishes that he finds somewhere else to warm his sneaky little paws.
So, of course, we’re satisfied. We’re feeling the day’s tension melt away now that we’ve reclaimed our home for ourselves and don’t have to worry about the mouse scurrying underfoot.
We’re ready to settle in for a long winter’s night. But as we go to place our evening dishes in the kitchen…
Of course, the mouse is back.
.
.
(Or it’s another mouse, but that ending didn’t feel as punchy and full circle.)
Some Thoughts on Trying to Stay Creative in January
A few weeks ago I read this book The Creative Curve. Right now I’m reading The Creative Ambush.
On the surface, these books have somewhat diametrically opposed viewpoints on creativity. The Creative Curve is written with the idea that creativity is something that can be harnessed with the right habits. The Creative Ambush insists that creativity is not a “hack” that everyone can just take advantage of if they program themselves right.
I’ve not made it very far into The Creative Ambush yet, but I’ll admit he talks about creativity in a way that I historically don’t like. Towards the end of the first section of the book he refers to creativity as a great immensity and that if we’re failing to draw on it, we’re the “malfunctioning funnel.”
I don’t think creativity is some mythical monolith we’re mining. I don’t believe struggling to be creative is a sign something is wrong with me or what I’m doing. I also don’t believe in inspiration, or I don’t believe waiting on inspiration is a reliable way to create.
I think showing up to the work is a reliable way to create and then occasionally inspiration drops by when she feels like it. Kind of like a mouse you didn’t expect and now have to acknowledge is in the walls.
While she may not show up when expected, inspiration doesn’t show up where she isn’t welcome. Unlike a mouse…
It is a new year, and while I’m resisting the impulse to necessarily produce (as in, finished pieces) right now, I do have goals for my year and I want to work toward them. Sometimes it’s about reframing your idea of progress. Sometimes it’s just about making space for inspiration to arrive…eventually.
The Creative Curve talks about the idea of steeping yourself in the source of your inspiration. (Though he uses less flowery language about it.) So I’ve been steeping in books and podcasts, making notes about what moves me.
It feels a bit like panning for gold, and I’m collecting little shiny bits and placing them on my shore. I will continue to inspect them more closely in the coming weeks, months, years, even. But for now, my hands are in staying in the water.
5 Creative Affirmations For The New Year
I am creative, even when I’m not creating.
I trust the process, even when I cannot see the final outcome.
I’m proud of the effort and heart I put into my work.
The work itself is enough.
I will welcome inspiration when it comes, but I will not wait for it.
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