The Artist's Way? Not Today

The universe has a way of calling us out.

About a month ago, I pulled out my copy of  The Artist's Way. I purchased the book a few years ago, never got past the first chapter and felt that it was time to give it another try. I read through the 1st chapter and right on to the second. If you have ever read this book, you will know that a very huge part of the "program" is morning pages. Morning pages are "three pages of longhand writing, strictly stream-of-consciousness . . .brain drain." I bought a notebook to use for my morning pages and did them for the first week, went into the second week and then, there it was again - the wall. I just did not make it past this point. I went a little further than last time, but not quite to chapter 3.

Why? Simply a matter of practicality. I am up between 4:30 and 4:45 each morning as it is and getting up another 20 minutes earlier just was not feasible for me. On the few days that I made it to the gym, it was all I could do to stay upright on the treadmill. I decided last night that it was time to put this away until my life could support it better, until I felt I was willing to make the time/changes necessary to get it done.

Now, imagine my surprise when I open my Google Reader and see this post from Deb about creativity - the very focus of The Artist's Way and this by the Brazen Careerist about the value of writing by hand to gain focus. Ah, morning pages.

Am I being called out? Well, the two posts did give me pause but I am clear that I really am not willing to fit this particular approach to creativity into my life right now. There are other things I am doing to bring out my creativity - working with my daughter's new Aqua Dots is one, this blog is another.

The Artist's Way? No, not today, but definitely some day.