Creativity comes in many forms.
Today I had the opportunity to attend a wonderful fireside given by the sisters of the late Sister Marjorie Pay Hinckley for our Stake's Relief Society. In addition to showing how important it is to have fun in life and laugh through every minute of it, enjoying every second, I had the honor of performing a musical number with my roommate Arielle.
We performed an arrangement of How Great Thou Art, with Arielle playing the cello, while I played the piano. To say that I was nervous would be an understatement; I only saw the sheet music for the piece the first time last Sunday. But I was willing and able to play.
We were the closing the number. Despite my nervousness and the fact that I was shaking the entire time I was playing, one thing I knew: the Spirit was most definitely there and its presence was strong, very strong. It was an experience I don't know I will ever be able to repeat, but I won't ever forget. I won't deny that the Lord lives and that He loves us for who we are, wherever we may be in life. I certainly received a reminder of that awesome truth today.
26 February 2011
25 February 2011
To...
To begin again
To go beyond fin
To be truly alive
To not be of the hive
To go beyond
To form the bond
To not be alone
To break the stone
To open the path
To add the math
To realize that
This place we’re at:
A new beginning
A life worth living
24 February 2011
Puppies!
A couple of puppies (and their mother's paw) requested from a member of my art website. You can see a close up of it here: http://bunny02.deviantart.com/art/New-Life-Puppies-198754169
The Start of Something New!
High School Musical quotes aside, this blog does represent the start of something new: my "living creatively everyday" project.
As President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:
"The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before. Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.
Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty. . . You might say, “I’m not the creative type. When I sing, I’m always half a tone above or below the note. I cannot draw a line without a ruler. And the only practical use for my homemade bread is as a paperweight or as a doorstop.”
If that is how you feel, think again, and remember that you are spirit daughters of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination. . . .
You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.
What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.
Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.”
The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you." (You can find his full address here: http://lds.org/ensign/2008/11/happiness-your-heritage?lang=eng and a nifty mormonmessages/video version of it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhLlnq5yY7k )
This blog will help serve and fulfill my own need to create. It may be something small, a sketch, a doodle, a poem, a short story, a philosophical thought, or a fun activity I did that day. This just may serve as a place to say: I wrote another 10 pages of my novel! But it will help me make sure I keep those creative juices flowing and that I serve one of my purposes here: to create.
As President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said:
"The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before. Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.
Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty. . . You might say, “I’m not the creative type. When I sing, I’m always half a tone above or below the note. I cannot draw a line without a ruler. And the only practical use for my homemade bread is as a paperweight or as a doorstop.”
If that is how you feel, think again, and remember that you are spirit daughters of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination. . . .
You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.
What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.
Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.”
The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you." (You can find his full address here: http://lds.org/ensign/2008/11/happiness-your-heritage?lang=eng and a nifty mormonmessages/video version of it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhLlnq5yY7k )
This blog will help serve and fulfill my own need to create. It may be something small, a sketch, a doodle, a poem, a short story, a philosophical thought, or a fun activity I did that day. This just may serve as a place to say: I wrote another 10 pages of my novel! But it will help me make sure I keep those creative juices flowing and that I serve one of my purposes here: to create.
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