August…

So many times I have written about how we as Americans (rather North Americans) tend to lose ourselves in stuffing our days full of activities and responsibilities and leave the leisure time obscured.  I guess I find myself both critical and receptive of this kind of lifestyle.

But, such has been my August.

I have been putting my heart into creating.  Through art and writing and by just being me;  I have some things in the works..

One good thing.  I feel good about everything I’m doing.  It’s kind of exciting to me to see whether I can develop work with my art in a country so unfamiliar to me and in addition, a place that could perhaps be lacking a strong art scene.

When I think back to my life several years ago, my present situation is exactly what I could have hoped for.  And maybe I enjoy it because there is so much possibility involved.  I’ve learned to be way more open for those kind of things.  Definitely, I could not have done it years ago without experiencing so many other things.

It’s not without times of setbacks and sometimes stressful days.  This has been my second August in Chile with the same symptoms of congestion and tiredness.  I even lost my voice for a few days which brought about several new additions to my medicine cabinet.

Nevertheless, I feel pretty happy with myself these days and I find myself enjoying the process of my daily life as it plays out as I try to manage the usual tensions and pressures of living.

It reminds me of my days with The Artist’s Way which taught me that art didn’t only have to be sought through painting or music or by some traditional form.   I could uncover the “art” that existed in the creation of my life in general.  Mediocre tasks such as decorating my living room or making my bed or washing my dishes generated a new meaning for me, as acts I could perform to support my own state of mind and state of being.  I began to consciously put my life in order not because I felt like I had to painfully do these petty errands that interfered with my day, but because they offered my life some possibility.  Actions such as cleaning create space…physically and mentally.

The small things we do for each other help to create this kind of space as well.  For me, these actions can create even more of an experience than perhaps a painting can, because in these actions exist the space to feel some freedom in the life of the person you are helping.  God knows, I have been given these “gifts” often from so many people throughout my life.

All that said, I am forever grateful because I need never feel alone in that respect.  The people I have loved are just as much in the work that I do and the life that I live whether they be present in my life or not because I know that nothing I have accomplished was ever truly done by only me.

I try to remind myself to be happy with the me that everyone has created as a gift in return…

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