Our son just sent me a pic of his freshly airbrushed Warhammer dwarves; our daughter was messaging me earlier about her punch needling; I’ve been needle felting. Maybe I should have named this post Don’t Let Lockdown Prick Your Creative Bubble!
I’m using creative in its widest sense here; the last thing I want to do is to guilt-trip people into thinking that their self-worth is dependent on their creative output. I spent, no…wasted so much time during Lockdown One scrolling through acres of glossy pics of folk’s latest arty-crafty projects or keeping my mouth shut during meetings as they updated us on their DIY, house makeovers, and whatnot.
Whereas I’d barely enough energy to walk the dogs before being hit with a fit of lethargy.
I’d dutifully taken on board society’s message that to be is to do. Or to put it another way, to do is to be; instead of giving thanks for being in a situation when unlike many, I’m housed, fed and warmed. I can order my diary (mostly) and don’t always have to cram the things I love doing into those tiny cracks of time between the more ‘important’ tasks.
But you know, when I looked back over 2020, I realised how much creative stuff had been bubbling away under the surface. Over the summer and autumn, I had a phase of trying things out: watercolours, oil pastels, junk journaling, felting; more poetry. With two more lockdowns, I’ve been forced to use up my supplies, not buy lovely new ones! Whilst I can’t say life’s been all plain sailing, (how can it be in These Strange Times?™️), I’m enjoying rediscovering my creative side.
Have you found different creative ways of keeping yourself going through lockdown? I’d love to hear about them?