Morning creativity

My Art

I just finished a great book on creativity and in it, almost as an addendum was the most IMPORTANT passage I’ve read that took all my jumbled thoughts/ideas/opinions on morning meditation and laid it out s i m p l e for me to digest.

I’ve loved Yoga a very long time. And with Yoga, or an intrinsic part of Yoga is meditation. Oh to quell the incessant thoughts, the citta vritti, of the mind!!

During my decade long teaching immersion, I found and wanted to fall in love with TM meditation, as so many of my fellow teachers are various others did. I paid my money, received my secret mantra** and got started. But no matter how much I tried I couldnt get with the program of meditating first thing. Before you….. eat, shower, coffee, tea. This never sat right with me. Or it never sat well in me.

And now I know why! Want to hear why?

Here it is.

Firstly the book I have recently fallen in love with, is The Courage To Create by Rollo May. It was first published in 1959, but it feels like he knew what we were heading towards. Minus one sections I fully LOVED, underlined, asterixed, and exclamation much of this book. Currently it has a napkin from Dubrovnik nestled into the last chapter LOL.

Secondly, here’s the part I resonated with 100%. Rollo writes* ‘When I am engaged in writing something important to me, I find that if I engage with the customary twenty-minute meditation period before writing, my universe has become too straightened out, too orderly. Then I have nothing to write about. My encounter has vanished into thin air. My ‘problems’ are all solved. I feel bliss to be sure, but I cannot write’.

Meditation smooths out the inner chatter, but it also takes away the need to create. A lot of my inner rumblings are understood through my morning rituals. They become the material that I write about, photograph and collate here. If I were to meditate first thing, I’d have nothing to wrestle with, nothing for contemplation and that takes away the beauty of living for me as I want to be in life, living it, wrestling with values, making my way.

My most favourite meditation teacher, Lorin Roche, taught so beautifully about meditation from the position of Bhakti, of love and devotion. And that’s a mediation practice I can dive into, no hard and fast rules, just sheer devotion and love to merge with.

The last 7 years, I’ve tucked away Yoga rules and ideology, immersed myself in poets and writers, the balm of a pot of morning tea, candles and a mood of devotion. And you know what, its given me so much. So I champion the right to start the day with what feels good & true!

My morning ritual supports and gives the BEST foundation to an amazing day ahead, giving me the groundwork of responding & creating, «not reacting».

My morning rituals also encourage my creativity and right now this is super important to me.

Here are my morning rituals and creative things I do that light the spark:

I make a pot of tea, let it steep.

Light a candle, a small one that lasts say 15 mins. I order mine from Esplora and she ships quick!

I pour a cup of tea into my selected cup of the day.

I sip my tea and look at my Love List. This is a small list in my notebook of values, things I love, goals, favourite perfumes etc. It’s a reminder to me of what I value and where I want to be. It’s not bougie or privileged to make this list, its free to do and it simply sits as a mental placeholder and reminder. Its a heart felt offering, for your-Self.

Some days I take a few pictures of my morning set up, currently on my dining table (as the puppies have overtaken the study where my desk is).

I might print a photo or two and then I do some writing or reading.

I often put a dab of perfume oil on, yes while I am sitting in my jammies and dressing gown.

Then its on with the day.

This can take anywhere from 1 to 15 minutes. Its juice for my creative expression. I also come up with ideas here for presents for people, coffee dates, movies or exhibitions I want to see.

Traditionally to be creative, you had to fulfil a certain type of criteria (I’m sure there are people that still think like this!). I used to write copy for Cosmetic Giants, I created competitions and ads, worked with companies to develop marketing programs, I’ve created websites and workshops, and yet still there’s this held inbreath sort of feeling when I think about creativity.

But the blessing of social media (yes there are one or two good things there) is that many have given their followers, readers, permission to feel and be creative.

Creativity isnt a Crown reserved for few.

Go create your day. Have some fun!

*Chapter 4 Creativity and Encounter Pg 93.

**Its not so secret. Its in the back page of one of my Yoga texts, along with many others (sigh).