Cool breeze, creativity blooming

I walked outside this morning to find....

A cool breeze!  A real, honest-to-goodness, cool breeze!  Really cool!  Like maybe 20-25 degrees cooler than a week or so ago!  For the first time in months!

And with the cool weather comes....


Long walks - around my neighborhood, in the park, at the beach

Big pots of creamy homemade soup for supper

Home-baked bread

Lazy afternoons outside with a good book and a cup of tea

Feeling good when I put on a soft hoodie

...and creativity!  Time to pull out the scrapbooks and art supplies and paints!

The power of art

I went to Borders yesterday, armed with coupons...I had a 33% off one item, $5.00 in Borders Bucks and a 10% off personal shopping day coupon.  Within 3 minutes of entering the store, I knew exactly what all those discounts were going towards.  It wasn't planned.  But as I walked towards the back of the store, past the sale rack, there at eye level was the book The Artistic Mother by Shona Cole.

Nope, not on sale.  And the price tag of $24.99 for a softcover book almost stopped me.  Then I looked inside.  It is filled with reasons why, as moms and creative people, art is so essential.  And why it's so hard to find the time and the energy to do it.  It has sections on creating space, on creating time, on allowing ourselves to put our art as a priority, even if the laundry isn't all done, or the carpets need to be vacuumed.

And it has 12 weekly assignments.  And projects.  And I knew I had to have the book!  Because I have been neglecting my art.

My keys on the table

My perfectly toasted Jalapeño bagel 

I was so inspired, especially after my realization a few days ago that I was NOT taking any photos, that I jumped into assignment one today, and brought my camera with me to breakfast at Panera.  And I looked at the details around me...

I looked at the light and the shadows, and the way they played off the leaves and illuminated the sidewalk...And I paid attention to the curve of the bench, and the writing on it I had never noticed before.  And the way the water danced in the fountain, and the proud way the palm trees stood against the blue September sky.  I even looked again at the Alfred Angelo bridal store that just a few short months ago was so important to me as I prepared for my wedding....

...and I knew that the placement of that book, on that shelf, at that moment, was not a mistake or random event.  It's time to make art again.

Does anyone else see the dancers?

It's happened since I was a little girl. A new piece of music would come on -- it could be classical or jazz or a completely modern composition or a traditional piece like a Navajo flute melody. Usually just instrumental, although on a few occasions, they have had lyrics. And instantly, I am off in my own world.

In my head, I see the dance that goes with the music. The dancers, the steps, the costumes, the lighting, the stage, the setting, the props. It's all there, complete. And I "watch", tranported from wherever I happen to be at the moment into an internal world where the dancers perform to the music.

I never consciously choose the moves or the lighting or anything else about the dance. I am a spectator, delighting in the dance, watching as the music is translated into movement and light.

While I "watch", I can usually continue to do whatever it is I must do...drive, cook, do chores. It's difficult to converse while I watch, so I usually try to stop that. Most people understand if I say I am listening to the music, and are willing wait to talk until it ends. They never know what I am "seeing" as I listen.

So my question is: Does anyone else see the dancers?