A Really Good Question

One of my favourite things is a great conversation, especially if it results in a really good question to take home and ponder, such a good question that it has the potential to change how I think or act.

A few weeks ago, some friends and I were talking about new energy and about how a change to the staff or board of directors at a business - say an art gallery - can change how things flow and feel. That led to pondering the flow of, or lack of flow of, energy in my own life. There are things I've already done that I don't want to revisit again, that I have no energy for, and others where I've discovered that my energy is limited. A good example of the later would be teaching.

Putting together curriculum, writing text, creating samples, developing illustrations, formatting lessons, publishing handouts, and - especially - marketing a workshop on the hope that people will sign up has such heavy energy that even though I've said often that I want to teach again, I haven't taken action. After this discussion, I realized that if I was asked to teach a specific workshop, it's highly like I would because I absolutely love teaching however, at this point in life, I'm not at all into spending precious time on that type of potential. I'd rather do something in the present, something tangible now. That's a huge awareness, the kind that can change directions and have one seeing truth differently.

This week, I had another great conversation about what title should we put on our business cards. I've had this debate before over the term art quilter versus textile artist and how they have different connotations. I used to put textile artist on my cards and eventually shifted to artist and probably would have stayed there until this conversation. As my friend said, everyone is an artist lately and the term has begun to lose its meaning.

She was advised to put what she did on her card, which is landscape painter, and before we parted company she challenged me to figure out what word I would put on my card. That opened up Pandora's box. I can't begin to tell you how many thoughts have been shifting around in my head over what word and why and could I live with that word and for how long and is it really the truth about me and what I do and what I want to do. So much shifting has gone on that I haven't ordered the cards yet.

Several years ago, I set a goal to improve my holistic health referring to emotional health, spiritual health, physical health, financial health, relational health, and creative health. I have since realized that this isn't a goal I can achieve and check off. It's a goal that will continue to evolve and develop over a lifetime.

Just as a chain is only as strong as the weakest link, these areas of holistic health connect to each other and when one is out of balance, they are all out of balance. Some areas are easier for me, like spiritual health with my journal time every day, and others are more difficult, like financial health where I'm still learning to live more responsibly.

In thinking about my holistic health chain, it occurred that a link I thought was strong may actually be pulling everything else out of balance and, surprisingly, that link is creativity, especially in the last ten years when I've been trying this and that idea to see where I want to go next. If after ten years I am still not sure what's next, perhaps I'm looking in the wrong direction or it's time to change directions ! ! ! ! Isn't that an interesting awareness.

Have I come to any conclusions? No. My mind is still shifting however I have the feeling that if I work on some of the weaker links and strengthen them that some of the stronger ones will give space and better balance will come into being. I personally don't think we ever get into optimum balance and stay there. I believe that there are moments of great balance to be enjoyed and stretches of working it out - that finding balance is an ever evolving aspect of our ever evolving lives.

LOL - and now about the images.

The first images are of the heart made using air dry clay over a wicker base. Once it dried, I painted it copper and then rubbed it with blue and black. It came out really well and, even so, I learned that I do not like working with air dry clay and I do not want to do pieces that need significant amounts of painting. I've never been fond of doing what I call "glue and sequin" crafts where I can't get that sticky sparkly stuff off of me. This is in that category.

The second images are of the finished necklace using the textile pendant I showed in the last posting. I am really happy with the way the pendant turned out. It's the most dimensional textile one I've created in all the years that I've been working at sophisticated textile jewelry. I do think it's a bit dark and perhaps needs some more definition toward the edges. I'm debating that. The chain is only okay. One thing I learned is that you cannot put beading wire in the tumbler - it breaks - and that resulted in having to rebuild the chain after the fact which was more difficult to get neat. I will most likely create a new chain for the pendant.

AND.. the third images are of the necklace I was wearing in the last posting. It's a combination of a found object heart, two wicker hearts that I bought at the dollar store and embellished, and a piece of knit fabric wrapped around cording to create the chain. With a tassel at the end. Again, I'm quite pleased with how this turned out. I wore it to Art Walk recently and one woman asked me to stand still long enough for her to "steal" it and then asked where I'd bought it and then wanted my card when she found out I'd made it. That's fun.

Two of the Pandora's box questions that are shifting is how do I want to approach jewelry and what do I want to do about the Year of 52 Weeks? These are goals and goals need to be flexible so that they work for you and not against you.

I've realized that 52 new things is too many new things for me, that it won't allow me to learn how to do something well before adding something new to the mix. I plan to focus on my wire weaving skills and textile elements ideas and let the rest go until that technique becomes important. What I mean by that is I will learn resin when learning resin is critical to what I want to accomplish and until then I'll let it go.

AND... I want to approach jewelry from a fun and learning perspective. I only want to make statement necklaces because that's my favourite form of jewelry and I only want to make pieces I would actually wear because otherwise why bother and if it starts not being fun or I reach the edge of what I want to learn sooner than I expected, that's okay too. It's a taste test, to see what I think, to see if I want to take it further or not. I'll see what life and holistic health, including healthy creativity, all bring to the mix.

Talk soon - Myrna

Grateful - a really good question