N = Nurturing our Creative Selves.

I have a few friends who claim to have no artistic ability, I have a few friends who have an amazing talent and can produce sketches that would rival any photograph and other amazingly crafty/artistic items.  Myself, I sit possibly somewhere in the middle.  Many years ago I began working on my sketching skills, but I let it slide - I let the creative side of me fall by the wayside to the demands of University and then work.  I'd try tapping into it every so often but I'd quickly loose interest.  It didn't help that, as stated above, I had some friends with amazing talent that made anything I did look like a 2 year olds finger painting.  I was incredibly insecure about what I produced, and being a perfectionist, I didn't want to produce something that was less than perfect.

It was only in 2007/8 that I really came to understand the nature of art and the importance of nurturing our creative side.  More importantly, I learned that by creating I was tapping into that spiritual core of myself, the inner child, the subconscious and that the work I produced didn't need to be worthy of the Louvre, it just had to come from the core.

Art is a great way to tap into our own inner selves, it is a way to express those parts of ourselves we don't consciously recognize (there is a reason its used in therapy).  Through art we can channel the divine and the divine within ourselves.  So what if your work is abstract, or it doesn't live up to another's standards?  If you can look at it and see yourself, see how you felt, see the divine, see the magic within it then you have achieved something truly great.

There are numerous mediums you can choose - art is a broad field.  I personally like to play with photography, sketching, painting, polymer clay and collage.  I have just started to delve into the world of watercolor.  I'm not a master at any of these, but every piece I produce holds a special place in my heart.  It talks of my journey, my feelings and emotions.  It helps me to look back and connect with myself. 

So let yourself go, embrace your inner creative selves, and work in an artistic medium - you'll probably be surprised by the results.