Get Creative with Boredom!
One of the potential side-effects of luxuriating along the Covid Riviera (aside from developing lizard-hands, and pupils shaped like the Netflix logo) is boredom. Boredom looms whenever we deem the current moment we’re in to be a big flopola...the external stimuli we feel so entitled to has let us down, and we are decidedly dissatisfied, dismayed, and disgruntled. We get plum out-of-sorts! We don’t know what we want, except something that’s different from what we actually have now. This moment is not cutting it for us. Send it back! Waiter! Something less dull, please! And, while you’re up, maybe another Sanka!
Like loneliness, boredom is a rejection of the present moment. It unceremoniously ejects us out of the ever-lovin’ now, and into a mental fantasy quest for the next diversion - some external happiness that will save us from this torturously dull moment (you may well be trying to escape this blog BUT THERE IS NO ESCAPE)! And, like loneliness, boredom is a gateway drug to other flavours of despair - real charmers, like depression and anxiety. Boredom (who, like misery, just loves company) brings anxiousness along to the party as its Plus One - you don’t know what to do with yourself, but you feel like you should be doing something. (WHERE’S THAT SANKA?) And the more tedious our own anxiety-inducing company becomes, the more we circle back to that ol’ nagging ennui! (I’ve got dibs on “Nagging Ennui” as a band name, by the way...but I’m happy to cut you in if you play either jazz accordion, or those soothing singing Chardonnay tumblers...hmmm...now that I think about it…make it both or nothing #speakyourtruth #sankatime)
Wracked with uncertainty about a potentially bleak future, we attempt an escape via our self-medication of choice (ie. does this Pandemic make me look fat?). Mind you, often blind to our patterns of self-destruction (“patterns of self-destruction” is a fabulous name for a cross-stitch collection by the way, if anybody would like to run with that and get back to me THANKS), our interior complaint may not register as “Why am I dissatisfied with this present moment? Perhaps I shall initiate some self-inquiry.” The discontentment may more likely present as, “Where’s the Bugles, yo?” or “It’s Margarita time! Arriba!” (fun fact: I do yell these things even if I’m alone)
Listen, Margaritas and Bugles were obviously bestowed upon man as sacred gifts...however, using them purely for self-rejection is a crime against Margaritas and Bugles! And let’s be clear - any distraction from the present moment ultimately amounts to self-rejection. That is to say, whatever you’ve got to offer to yourself just isn’t up to snuff. And, quite frankly, you are far too spectacular to be cast aside like that! I won’t stand for it!! And think of the Bugles! THE BUGLES.
One way to keep yourself hot-glued to the present moment is through creativity. Being creative effortlessly centres you, and coaxes you back to calm presence. When you access the creative energy inside of you and you’re gettin’ all into the flow, you’re not thinking about being anywhere other than where you are. Time can fly by or seem to stand still. You feel capable, connected, and at home.
You don’t have to be a card-carrying artiste to tap into your creativity; anything that energetically speaks to you, holds your focus, and brings you a sense of peaceful pleasure exercises that power in you (I have no artistic credentials whatsoever; and, as you tell, it hasn’t stopped me!). You may want to artfully re-organize the pile of steppin’ clogs in your closet, tinker with your Aunt Gladys’ famous inedible string-bean aspic (CAUTION: DON’T MESS WITH SUCCESS) or re-jigger your nostalgic display of vintage Pop Shoppe bottle-caps...the medium is yours to play with! It’s the devotion that’s key. And playfulness. Creativity is playful. Let yourself be silly and have fun, for the love of galoshes! You’ll be surprised at how quickly and easily the playful feeling of devotion to your task will raise those vibes and elevate that mood! (even if it’s from “a bit snappish” to “less snappish”...or perhaps “snappish lite”)
The reason giving over to that creative urge is so dang delectable is because we ARE creativity. That life force that propels us is pure creative potential, and we are lousy with it! Creativity is life. And vice-versey! And there doesn’t need to be any creative endgame - no exhibition is required, no opening night, no Etsy page (though, please feel free to visit my Etsy gallery of pipe-cleaner and chewing-gum sculptures - they all look remarkably like me)...the only goal is pure delight in a beautiful, creative moment. A moment in which you feel right at home. Because you are home. There is nothing boring about you, liebling. You are a creative being. And a darn cute one, I hasten to add!
You know, there’s been some discussion recently about whether we’re all in the same boat, or in the same storm but in different boats. Both points are very lovingly-intended, and I adore a nautical theme as much as the next kipper! But to me, the most remarkable thing about this most remarkable time is seeing our common denominator as humans so clearly. If there’s a storm, and you hop into a jet and take off somewhere on a whim, in short order you will find yourself above the storm clouds, and treated to endless expanses of blue sky. Now, from this vantage-point, we can confirm that just because we only see clouds and stormy weather down below, that doesn’t mean the blue sky is not there. It’s always there, even when there’s a storm a-brewin’. Well, each of us, at our core, is the blue sky. That’s our common denominator! And all of our judgments and complaints and conjured narratives are the clouds covering our blue sky. We’re all in our own personal storms, depending on what we’re thinking and believing (not just in Covid times, but always!). But, that doesn’t mean our blue sky is not there! It’s always there. Waiting patiently. And your creative energy is the jet that can transport you through your personal storm to the blue sky above. That blue sky is the same magnificent boat that we’re all in. My blue sky and yours are one and the same! That’s our connector! And that’s how I know just how absolutely glorious you are - because I know that behind the clouds of confusion and conditioning in all of us is light and joy and compassion and playfulness! And because we’re connected on that most beautiful, fundamental level, I know that you know it, too! Knowing that light - that blue sky - lives in everyone makes compassion a no-brainer! I’m into it!
And I am into YOU! Big time! So please remember to be kind to yourselves, or I’ll be really miffed! Treat yourself to a tiny part of your day where you’re not trying to control what’s going to happen, or what should have happened...enjoy a beautiful, gentle, fun, maybe even silly (those are often my favourites) creative moment where you can see for yourself the blue sky that you are right NOW. Above the storm! In that moment of creative potential, anything is possible! I love you!! 💓💓💓