The main reason that I am so devoted to the creative process has very little to do with art per se.

 

 

Now don’t get me wrong. I love art in all of it’s many manifestations. Every wall in my house is dripping with color. My home is filled with paintings and sculptures and turquoise jewelry. Every light fixture or cabinet or light switch cover is some unique manifestation of someone’s creative expression. We have over 20,000 songs in our music data base. There is at least one bookshelf in every room of the house and books spilling over onto the floor and climbing up the walls where there are no bookshelves.

 

 

I have the deepest respect and love for art and the artistic impulse. Being surrounded daily by so much beauty and creativity fills me again and again with delight. And I can’t imagine my life without the fruits of those artistic expressions.

 

 

But what really turns me on about the creative process is how it is an energy for creating your life and the world you want to be living in.

 

 

I often say to people that the workshops and classes and retreats that I offer to my students are primarily for me. I love the world and community that gets created at these events. It’s the world I want to live in. And it’s the kind of world that makes me incredibly happy. The fact that other folks also get value out of the world I want to create is simply a wonderful byproduct.

 

 

So here is a list of some of the qualities and experiences I want people to have in the world I want to create.

 

 

The world I want to create is one where everyone feels a profound sense of safety because they don’t have to worry about being criticized or put down or judged for being who they are. Where everyone can fully trust that kindness and compassion are always available and is simply how you expect to be treated.

 

 

The world I want to create is filled with the deep sense of well-being that comes when people feel accepted to totally be themselves.

 

 

The world I want to create is one where people experience a deep sense of loving connection with each other because they are encouraged to be utterly and completely real. Where nothing is held back… not their rage or fear or doubt or grief… nor their exuberance or shining wildness or quirkiness or non-stop energy.

 

 

A world where it’s not possible to be too big or too much or too loud or too intense. Or too shy or too sensitive or too needy or too emotional.

 

 

Where the experience of shame can be predictably healed through the ongoing experience of being seen and held and witnessed with love.

 

 

The world I want to create is one where a sense of community is palpably real, something to be counted on no matter what and experienced as a genuine and grounded reality in people’s lives.

 

 

The world I want to create is one where intuition and emotions and the deep wisdom of the body are honored and respected. Where there is an understanding that as human beings we are blessed with multiple forms of knowing and that each one carries a powerful and much needed intelligence.

 

 

The world I want to create is filled with patience and understanding as people grapple with the unknown and the unfamiliar.

 

Where there is no pressure to figure things out or to have everything always make sense. Where it’s more than OK to stumble around in the dark and to not have to have an answer to the questions of “What the heck is going on?” or “When will this change?” or “Why is this happening?” Where there’s space to allow things to unfold in their own way and in their own time.

 

The world I want to create is a place where risk and experimentation and trying new things that you have never done before is expected and supported with cheers and encouragement and enthusiasm… not trepidation and anxiety and fear.

 

 

Where not knowing what you are doing is no excuse to not to try and do it anyway. Where you can be confident that whatever the outcome, the fact that you were courageous enough to try is the only thing that really matters.

 

 

The world I want to create deeply supports everyone to live their lives from their own sovereign center.

 

 

To be continually asked to step more fully into a personal sense of power and inner authority. To make all choices from the deep core of their being. To have impeccable boundaries. To be respected as fully in their No’s as they are in their Yes’es. To be able to say what they want and need clearly and uncompromisingly and trust that the folks surrounding them will do the same.

 

 

The world I want to create is a place where respect is a given, differences are celebrated and applauded, creativity is championed and love is the currency of the realm.

 

 

Where generosity flows like an abundant river because everyone is deeply rooted in the bountiful soul energy of who they are and who they were meant to be. And are continually fed and filled by being part of a circle of bountiful soul energy that flows from the hearts and minds of their friends and companions on this journey.

 

These are just some of my visions for the world I want to create.

 

So my question for you, oh wondrous creative being, is this… what is the world that YOU want to create and make more real? Not only for yourself but for those lucky folks that happen to be swimming in your orbit?

 

Write it down. Don’t be afraid to wish for the stars. And pay attention to all the ways that this is already happening. To all the ways that you are already an artist of your own life. To all the ways that your presence is a gift to the world. To all the ways that your creative genius already manifesting.

 

 

And to celebrate yourself for how you are making the world a better place through your visions and your heartfelt desires of what you want this world to be.