Getting Back on Track

I hope everyone is well.  I have missed being on dA on a regular basis, and the community and feedback.  More than that, I have missed creating art.  Even my more recent pieces are things that I created late last year/beginning of this year for an art show at work.  Until that art show, I had not drawn anything in ALMOST A WHOLE YEAR.  That was shocking to me when I realized it.  Art used to be such an integral part of my life, but the daily routine of work-chores-sleep sort of muscled it out of the picture.

I am trying very hard to get back into doing it on a regular basis.  The sad part is, it has been so long since I've created with any regularity, I have been having difficulty doing it.  Not just the skills aspect, although that is part of it.  The real trick has been ignoring the inner critic who tells me that I've lost my touch, that it will take too long to gain back the ground I've lost, and that I should feel guilty for working on it when there are so many other "important" things I should be doing.

But I've been thinking:  God gives us all unique talents and skills.  And when God gives a gift, it is a GOOD gift.  We may choose to neglect or misuse it, but the fact that we have the gift is a sign that it is part of God's plan for our life.  Ergo, my ability to draw is not something "extra" or "unimportant", because God Himself thought it worth giving to me.  So I don't need to feel guilty when I take time to create.  Yes, certain things like family and my job take precedence, but there is nothing selfish about nurturing that creative aspect of my being.  If anything, it would be irresponsible of me to ignore a skill God gave to me.

So I have started to take the time to actively incorporate drawing time into my day.  Due to the lack of practice, I am working through a book of drawing tutorials to try to regain the motor skills (this one, if you're curious: www.amazon.com/You-Can-Draw-30…).  I checked the book out from the library and have been doing 1-2 lessons a day.  I've only been doing it for five days, but AMAZES me how good it feels.  How right it feels.  It's like something in my self was broken, and it's just been snapped back into place.  I hadn't even fully realized how much I'd missed drawing until I started doing it again.  It's like when my dad had his gallbladder out after years of flare ups:  he was so used to the pain, he didn't even realize how bad he had felt until he was reminded what being pain-free felt like.  (And I haven't even really drawn anything "fun" yet - just spheres and cubes and some sketchy sketches of my own.)

For those of you who, like me, have let the "daily-ness" of daily life push your creativity to the back burner, let me encourage you to stop that trend before it goes any further.  Grab that pencil, paintbrush, guitar, computer mouse, stylus, Worbla foam, fabric, colored pencil, marker, word processing program, theremin - WHATEVER IT MAY BE - and just take a few minutes out of your day to feed your creative self.  To nurture that God-given gift.  It deserves a place of importance.  Maybe not as much importance as some other things (groceries don't buy themselves, after all), but it needs to be a priority.

Happy creating, everyone!