life – Page 7 – Ginger Simpson White

writing routines and rhythms…

I’ve never been good at sticking with a regular writing routine on a long-term basis. What seems to happen is that I develop a loose structure for myself, either for a period of time or for a particular project, and it works for a while.

Do I beat myself up about it and feel guilty about lacking discipline? There have definitely been times of that.

But I was recently reminded that it’s helpful for me to think about my writing routine less as a structure, and more in terms of a rhythm.

The rhythm isn’t always constant. It shifts and changes. But the beat of my writing is always there, even if it’s in the background of my life.

And when there are times I seem to lose the rhythm – which does happen – I just need to listen for it and connect to it again.

For me, that feels like a more gentle way to return to a writing routine, instead of trying to guilt and shame myself into a structure. It feels like a way of giving myself more grace. It feels more like being kind to myself – and to my writing.

And feeling that way helps me get back to writing, which connects me more to joy, and fuels my sense of purpose.

These past months, as I’ve been trying to find my way through grief and change, my writing has been quite start-and-stop. This has been a period, however, when I haven’t been beating myself up about it. I believe it’s been important to give myself the time and space I need for such major life events.

Time and space is still needed, but I’m starting to write more again. I’m also starting to feel the need and the desire for more of a regular writing routine again. More of a rhythm again.

So I’m leaning into that, and letting that desire guide the way. Not thinking of it as structure. Not thinking of it as a should.

But experimenting with times of day. Playing with flows of words. Listening for the beat of my writing and synching with its rhythm.

Connecting with the joy of it.

How about you? What helps with getting you to write? Whether it’s a structured schedule, a go-with-the-flow loose routine, or something else, the important thing is being aware of what helps you write if writing is what you want to do.

♥

creativity every day even when…

I’ve written before about how it’s important to me to create every day. Even if it’s not much and not for long, I paint daily, and it’s something that helps me with calming and grounding and getting through.

There have been some big life changes that I’ve been dealing with, and there have been all the emotions that come when those things happen.

My hubs is officially retired now, which is a time of transition and brings adjustments to daily life and daily schedules for both of us. And our lives and our home are also very different now because our sweet 14-year-old calico Chloe passed away the week before Christmas after a long fight with cancer.

Only two and a half weeks after Chloe passed, my mother died.

And while none of these things were unexpected, they are still very big changes.

There’s a lot of grief. A lot of adjustment. A lot of feeling like life is just…different.

Through it all, every day, I continue to paint.

I paint because it calms me. It grounds me. It settles me. It brings me moments of joy even on days that are terribly difficult.

Even if I only paint for a minute, even if I only paint a heart or a circle, I paint every single day.

I do it because it helps me.

Even when life is hard, creativity helps.

What creativity can you bring into your life today, even if life in general is bringing challenges and struggle? What creative outlet gives you joy, even if you only have the time or energy to do it briefly?

Please let yourself do it. Because it can help.

♥

creativity every day…

Years ago, I made the decision to deliberately and intentionally stay connected to my creativity – no matter what was happening in my life. I made it my dream, my goal, to keep this relationship going on a consistent basis.

It’s true there are ebbs and flows with creative projects and the creative process in general. But even so, I believe it’s possible to stay connected with creativity. And I’ve been determined to do it… because creativity is vital to my mental and emotional well-being.

Writing, especially writing fiction, is the creative outlet with the longest pull on me. I started writing little stories with thick markers as soon as I could write sentences and put them together.

I don’t write every day, though.

For me to write fiction, I need a certain amount of feeling settled inside, and there are days the anxiety I experience (not anxiety about writing, but the daily anxiety I deal with) doesn’t calm down enough. That’s especially been the case over the past several years. And although I’m now writing more often and more consistently again, it’s not an each-and-every-day occurrence.

But there is a certain creative outlet I do on a daily basis. Whether I write or do any other creative activity on any given day, what I do each day, without fail, is paint.

Every single day.

It doesn’t have to be for a lengthy amount of time. It doesn’t need to turn into anything. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks about what I paint or how I do it.

All it requires is for me to pick up a paintbrush and move paint on canvas or paper.

That’s all.

But that’s so much.

There are days when I paint for less than five minutes. And that’s okay. There are times I paint a few hearts or circles or squares in the morning, and then paint a few more in the afternoon. That’s fine too. Sometimes I fill an entire page with paint, at other times one page represents a week’s worth of painting a small bit every day, and at other times I’ll spend weeks or more painting on a single canvas. All of that is also satisfying and good, as far as I’m concerned.

For me, it’s about the doing of it – what I call paint play – every day. Because it calms me, it helps ground me, and it brings me joy.

What creative activity does that for you? (And don’t say you’re not creative, because you are!)

Is it painting, sketching, drawing, writing, sewing, quilting, photography, pottery, cooking, calligraphy, knitting, playing an instrument? The list of possibilities is huge. Find the one (or ones) that bring you joy.

Even if you rotate through a variety of creative activities instead of sticking to just one, and even if it’s only for a few minutes when you do it, make time to connect with your creativity every day.

It really does make a difference.