This update is long overdue.
Luckily, I’ve recently pulled some muscle at work (plan B) so time off is really off.
No errands or DIY projects to spend time on. Instead I’ve been resting, practising with my art paintbrushes and … I’ve realised I left you in limbo after my last update.
The main reason for not writing lately is a book I mentioned on an earlier post: The Artist’s Way, by Julia Cameron. It has pearls such as “… a small shift like a newly painted bathroom can yield a luxuriously large sense of self-care”.
Comments like that -among the exercises and the stories of other creatives she worked with- triggered a chain reaction of one small project after another…
-By the way, she is right: A freshly painted bathroom makes you feel like royalty-
I found myself spending the last few months between DIY projects, recycling and self-caring activities. I reduced drastically the amount of time I spend on social media, business activities, watching TV or with friends.
I don’t know where it will take me, but every time I think I’m nearly done a new idea pops up, another small project or activity I want to try.
Even friends have moved in and out of my life in mysterious ways (Julia Cameron calls those apparently random events synchronicity) and I feel freer, happier and more focused because I have more time to myself.
I’ve become a fond follower of the book and I feel better for it.
I’ve indulged in arts lessons (joining already new ones for the new course), I’ve decorated rooms I had left neglected for years, took up projects I didn’t even know I wanted to do, such as removing the coving from my bedroom and redecorating it entirely…
It’s all good.
Those little projects make life enjoyable.
Other things (business, marketing, blogging etc) will happen in due time.
I’m not in a hurry.
I am happy to use my time to care of myself, to rest, to paint and do things I enjoy doing, alone or with people I like.
Even if that means my blog posts and newsletters are fewer and fewer…
If you have any buried dreams I’d recommend you read the book (The Artist’s Way, by Julia Cameron,1995) Those small projects soon add up and you may end up walking taller, lighter, with new life goals (buried dreams?) to accomplish.
Maybe you’ll end up with freshly painted walls too.
Or joining a class you’ve been putting off for years.
These are some fresh pics of my DIY projects. Nearly finished now.
Bedroom changes:
By the way, it took me weeks to prepare my walls for repainting after removing coving, treating cracks behind lining paper and windows, etc.
Much like with the book, allow yourself time. Small goals will help you move forward without losing hope. Slow progress is still progress.
Thank you for reading this far.
I hope it inspired you to do something about your own unfinished projects, whether DIY or buried dreams.