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One of my favourites of L's artworks this Christmas... |
December is typically a month of madly doing and making for me - as it probably is for many. I do love to give handmade gifts, and I do love the feeling of joy and satisfaction at enabling my customers to give hand-made gifts too, lovingly crafted. But this month, seasonal illness has struck our household at just the moment when we would usually be our busiest. Out of necessity - to care for my small ones properly - I have dropped a few things, just let them go.
It's been both easy and hard to let things go! Hard to let go of the high level of output (and sense of achievement/pride in my work/being on top of things) that I am used to, and really quite hard to feel that sense of missing out on all the many festivities that we have all become used to in recent years too...
However, it has also been with a complete sense of beautiful ease - that letting go - has brought us into a quieter, more mindful space of acceptance and togetherness. In the grand scheme of life, the things we have let go of this year, don't really matter... if anything what we have discovered instead, is a truer sense of where the warmth of the season lies... we've spent more time really together, we've spent more time at home than we usually would in December - our lovely, quirky, creatively decorated tree is a sort of living being, an additional family member that we enjoy the festive presence of as it is the main thing right now connecting us to Christmas... that and our seasonal story books and a few carols on You Tube...
And with regards to creating, making, doing... well, by doing less, by letting go and not making quite as much as I usually would - a space has opened up where I remember and re-connect to the true value that the gift of creativity holds for me all along; creating is most essentially to me, a form of mindfulness practice... of slowing down, stilling, being able to hear my thoughts as I quietly work, creating space...
It is not really about rushing, conquering my To Do list, seeing how much I can create in the shortest amount of time... of course, sometimes ideas come, and there is an accompanying intense sense urgency to set about doing and making them happen! And of course, when crafting to order, as sense of work pace/rhythm, by necessity unfolds in order to meet the creative tasks I have taken on. But all the while, for me, joy in creating is at its best when there is room for quiet, space, not rushing, and settling into that interior space where I can feel the sparks of inspiration and connection to the moment, to something higher. It is at its best when I am able to create from the true quiet within.
So, in a way, December illness has been a gift of some sorts. We've really appreciated the festive things that we have managed to participate in, rather than feeling over-saturated, we've had a more spacious time to be together, the children seem way less hyped and focused on their Christmas wish list/checking out the latest gadgets and toys in hope they might come their way (that is a parenting win in my book!), and instead they are enjoying the little things - of which there have been plenty, right here at home. And creatively, everyone seems content to make, draw, create when the mood or moment arises - rather than feeling the pressure to create. I think that's a lovely note to end the year on and carry forward with us into the next. A sense of quiet wellness within our hearts and minds as we enjoy what the season brings, and await graciously, whatever impulses come next...