Category: creativity

creativity, daily moments

colorful little plate flower

dailystepsblog

plateflower

About a week into weight watchers I found an entire online community of men and women on Instagram. These folks use the social media platform as a way to connect, inspire, and find accountability. I could spend hours on end reading posts, finding new accounts to follow, and gaining wisdom from tried and tested habits, recipes, and ideas.

One thing I noticed right away in these images was the COLOR! Every color I could imagine- bright and vivid, subtle and calming- I see them all when I scroll the feed. Photos of healthy foods grown from the earth… foods that provide us with the nutrition our bodies were made for… complimentary background colors and objects… I notice them all. I see relaxing tones that depict an accomplished end to a day dedicated to healthy living. It’s all so inspiring to me- a steady stream of color that fills my news feed. I have always been a girl who loves color and now here I am, with this social media tool I can scroll through right in the palm of my hand.  Daily I am feeling inspired to bring color into my world in ways I hadn’t thought of before.

While out running errands this week, I found these fun plates at Kohls. They were all marked half-off, displayed to draw you into their design. It didn’t take long for them to find their way into my shopping basket to bring home. Everytime I look at them, I feel inspired to fill them up with healthy foods- foods that make me feel as happy as the plates themselves, foods that color my world with health and that help me thrive.  I couldn’t even wait to make the food that goes on them. With a laundry list of chores ahead of me, I decided these plates were a priority. I found myself creating the flower you see above, just as a way to play, express, and appreciate something so small yet so inspiring to me.

We all need these little moments. We have a list of have-to’s and should’s as long as our day will allow. But guess what? Tomorrow? Same thing- another list. There’s always a “I really ought to get ____ done” running in our head. But today?  Today I chose to play. Color makes me feel carefree.  A few round pieces of melamine consume my thoughts and let me just be.  I feel happy in this small moment, almost relaxed.  Some days the laundry can wait to allow this kind of spontaneous, unplanned time happen. Procrastination can be okay. Little plate flowers bloom right where I created that playful space for myself… and it colors my world just a little more happy. 🙂

“… a cheerful heart is good medicine but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”    – Proverbs 17:22❤️

 

creativity

sharpie art

dailystepsblog

josie sharpie

It’s been about a month since we lost our sweet girl, Josie.  It’s amazing just how close we grow to our pets- they most definitely are family.  The relationship between our kids and their animals is really something to sit back and admire.  It’s also interesting to see how differently we each grieve her loss.

My oldest girl turns to art for most things.  She drew this quick, sharpie-on-notebook-paper picture of our little pup.  I love how she captured her face so well with such simple use of color and lines.

We were all meant to be creative.  It doesn’t mean we have to all be Picasso’s.  By design, God is the ultimate Creator and He leaves a thread of that legacy within each of us.  There are so many ways to bring out your artistic side.  The obvious, yes… paints, colors, pencils and papers.  There are also words- writing and poetry, the way we express our feelings in those special cards we give others.  And we can’t forget that daily camera we have in our hands 24/7.   Our phones allow us to have a camera ready at all times to capture all those precious moments of life.  Even if you don’t love the photo you take, there are lists and lists of apps that put filters on those pictures.  You can click a few times and turn a mundane shot into a graphic work of art.

And to be inclusive of all mediums, simply the way we live is artful.  Loving others is an expression of our souls.  The way we serve those around us, attending to their needs, can be beautiful.  Reaching out to a hurting friend, praying for them… it all comes from the heart, which IS artistic.  Never stop paying attention to those people we do life with and the places we find ourselves.  Never quit looking for a way to find a creative outlet that suits you for both times of happiness and times of sorrow.  It is necessarily therapeutic and the beauty it adds to our world is priceless.