The Touch of Butterfly Wings

"Take your fears to the Lord. Talk to him and listen to him. Then, if you feel a spiritual motion as tiny as the touch that a butterflies wing might make,acknowledge it, heed it, and let His influence work upon you."

-Patricia T. Holland

Your Mind is a Place

I did a warm-up with my Creative Writing class a little while ago in which I asked my students to imagine that their mind was a place that they could walk into and look around. What would it look like? What people or things would you find in there? I didn't feel like writing at the time, so a drew a quick, whimsical sketch in pencil. I know, it’s pretty bad when the teacher doesn't feel like writing but, hey, it happens. After school, I went over my sketch in pen, collaged in the planet earth, and colored the river and teddy bear with a combination of colored pencil and water color. Oddly enough, the very last thing I did was write. It ended up being a bit of a “stream of consciousness” story about finding a story idea in my brain (specifically, the new novel I’m working on). I liked the story of discovering a story in my own mind so much, that I then story-boarded it. I’m thinking I might turn it into a bigger more refined art project if I ever get around to it. I hope this inspires and entertains.

I'M SIGNIFICANT!

Calvin expresses my feelings for this first post exactly. I've never done a blog and, I must admit,  I'm a bit intimidated by the prospect. It's as if my little voice is yelling into the vast universe of the web. Will anyone hear? I guess I'll find out because, as you can see, I've decided to go for it.

I love to create. I create mostly through writing and art, and that is what this blog will mostly revolve around. The focus will be on the creative process in all it's forms: spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and even physical.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, one of the leaders of my church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or "Mormons" for short), once gave a talk in which he addressed creativity. He said, "The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before." I feel this wish profoundly. I am rarely happy unless I am creating something, anything, if only a new link-up of trails to run through the mountains near my home. This blog is a way for me to show some of my creations and to, hopefully, inspire and entertain any who read it.

In that same talk, President Uchtdorf went on to say, "...remember that you are spirit daughters [and sons] of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination."

I spent years trying to write my first novel, short stories, poems, and more and it never even occurred to me where the creativity and inspiration was coming from. I guess I just thought there was some kind of subconscious cesspool that I would dredge any time I needed a good idea. Not the best way to work. It wasn't until I read The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron that I realized where that creativity came from and that creativity is a spiritual experience. Cameron echos Uchtdorf's ideas when she writes, "...creativity is our true nature...a process at once as normal  and miraculous as the blossoming of a flower at the end of a slender green stem." She goes on to say, "Making our art, we meet firsthand the hand of our Creator."

This was a huge paradigm shift for me! It completely changed the way I thought about creativity. Armed with this new knowledge given to me by Uchtdorf and Cameron, I completely changed my creative process. Uchtdorf said, "The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create." This is where the name for my blog comes from. I have tried to take those words to heart. Now, I try to rely on the Lord and do my best to show Him gratitude for all of His help.

Uchtdorf added, "That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters [and brothers], trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you." I dearly hope that this blog will accomplish that. Maybe as long as I am creating, this "dust speck" is, in fact, significant.