G’s Year of Creativity

December 28th, 2008

A couple weeks ago, I got a wonderful email from someone I'll call "G." I asked her if I could share her email here because I think it exemplifies what the Creative Every Day Challenge is all about. I hope it will inspire you to know that you too are an artist and that you can take the leap to be creative every day in whatever way works for you.

Hi Leah!

I wanted to drop you an email ~ to thank you for putting this wonderful idea out there to be Creative Everyday. Looking back, I have no idea how I found your website at the first of this year. But? I did! I read what you wrote, inviting everyone and anyone to challenge themselves to be creative everyday. I took it. I didn't sign up to be part of the group ~ too shy I think. I have sketched, drawn all my life ~ but kept my sketchpads in the closet. Every now and then, I would take something I had drawn and make it "public". But, that was a very rare occurrence. Never having any art education or instruction, I fell into that terrible crack called: Oh, no... I am not an artist. So very sad....

However, all that has changed through the course of this year. I did take you literally and I did draw something every single day. I also posted my drawings at the end of each week for almost 6 months. Over the summer months and into the fall, life was what life can be sometimes ~ and I didn't post any drawings. I did, however, continue to draw. October, I sat down with my scanner, scanning in all the drawings up to that point, and posted them!

I continued from that point on ~ posting at the end of each week. I sat here today, while the snow fell here in Portland, Oregon ~ posting yet another week's drawings. Looking at the calendar, I realized, with the three weeks remaining in this year ~ I DID IT! I made a commitment to draw every day. I did it! I have four small sketchpads FILLED with drawings ~ some doodles, some renditions of others' work I loved, some "pictoral journal entries and some preliminary drawings for greeting cards sent! (Yes, I said sent ~ I actually put some what I drew OUT into the world.)

My blog has been invitation only ~ and have friends tell me as the months passed, how much they looked forward to that email from me stating in the subject line: Drawings Posted. And, after a year of keeping to the pen, I have discovered alot about myself ~ and there has been this self confidence I have not known ever before ~ simply in life. A friend of mine once told me: Just draw a line on a page. Make yourself do it! And, it will change your life." With his words and your challenge, I made the commitment in January of this year to give this a try.

Thank you! Thank you for taking your idea to this forum. Thank you for setting a bar not too high, but one that we could raise or lower as we chose to do. This has been the most amazing year....

~G

Thank you again, G, for sharing your story with me and for allowing me to share it with others. Happy creating, everyone!

p.s. You can find out more about CED and how to participate here. For 2008 participants, I will not be posting a link widget for the last Monday of December. You can post anything you have to share at the post from last Monday.

Posted by Leah on December 28th, 2008 in art, creative every day 08, creative every day 2009, creativity, inspiration | Permalink | 15 Comments |

15 Responses

That is wonderful. I’m sure it is gratifying that your project has inspired people so much. And it has.

I am kind of amazed at the medium of blogging. It has turned out to be so much more than I thought it was when I first began so many years ago. So much better.

Bloggers create things through their blogs. They create themselves in a way that they might never have managed without this strange, loose, almost anonymous community.

It really is amazing, isn’t it?

Posted by: rowena | Dec 28, 2008 at 11:04 pm |

I found this site by way of Paula and I am so pleased I did.
It sounds like a wonderful challenge and one I will relish and so I would like to participate for 2009.

I must also thank you for the tutorial on how to add the button, which I have now done. It was so clear and helpful.

I have added the button to my blog, Dolly’s Dreamings and look forward to playing along and making new friends in 2009

I wish you and your loved ones a wonderful new year filled with love and laughter

Posted by: Scrapdolly | Dec 29, 2008 at 3:26 am |

G-s letter made me teary eyed!!! What a wonderful letter and you are right, it does exemplify exactly what this challenge is all about. So many things have been accomplished by just doing a little every day.

My two big accomplishments this year was to finish 52 projects in 26 weeks and I surpassed that goal well ahead of schedule (I wanted to do one a week at the beginning of the year but needed more focus so in June, I put a number out in the universe and it came back to me in abundance). The other goal I had was to submit something for publication and I achieved that in November and will have another article coming out in January—so from me, I want to THANK YOU as well for guiding us along, forming a community of sorts of so many great artists and individuals that we can turn to for support and inspiration.

Your efforts have made a huge difference in so many lives!

Here’s to a wonderful year a head of us all!

Posted by: lucy | Dec 29, 2008 at 7:30 am |

Hey Leah – I am totally doing this this year! I need it! thanks for being so organized. LOL.

Posted by: Cheryl | Dec 29, 2008 at 9:26 am |

Thank you and G for sharing. Her sentiments are echoes of what many of us feel. I’ve fallen into the dreaded crack and have often felt uncomfortable when folks refer to me as an artist. I try to avoid that label and focus on what I love, creating. Your blog and the participants who mingle here continue to be sources of inspiration. It doesn’t matter what we are called, what matters is that we love what we are doing. Many thanks. k

Posted by: Kathryn – Collage Diva | Dec 29, 2008 at 12:24 pm |

Hi Leah
Your blog is inspiring and I’d like to join in the 2009 challenge
thanks Rosie

Posted by: Rosie | Dec 29, 2008 at 4:00 pm |

Thank you for sharing G’s email…and thank you, G, for letting Leah share it!
I feel a kinship…I, too, tend to be on the shy side…I have been visiting Leah’s blog daily for over a year now, but it took me until this past AEDM (Nov 2008) to actually join in…I set up my own blog in late Oct for that purpose…it has been wonderful…Leah is a wonderfully encouraging and amazingly giving person…we are so lucky to have someone willing to do all the behind the scenes ’stuff’ and organizing for this group!…thank you Leah!

I also, about a year ago started joining in on postcard and ACEO projects thorugh WetCanvas.com and that has helped with pushing myself not only to create more often, but also to push myself to try new things…

I have always dabbled in one form of art or another through my life…but picked up the paint brushes (and palette knives, and spoons and fingers and whatever else I can get my hands on to get the paint on the canvas!) about 4 years ago and have been having such fun with it…over the past year I have decided to go a bit more public and here the old fears kick in again…am I kidding myself, am I setting myself up for public humiliation…it is exciting and terrifying at the same time!…in Feb I have a solo show at a much bigger venue than I have done so far…a big room that sees a fair amount of traffic! (I have participated in two group and had one solo so far at a local Unitarian congregation, but that was one wall in a lounge…not very big)…I am also going to put my paintings in for three jurried events over the course of Jan and Feb…like I said this all both thrills and terrifies!

I am definately joining (have signed up) for CED for 2009 and I am so glad that I found Leah’s blog! I can’t remember how I first came across it…think it was through someone at WetCanvas…

Here’s to a wonderfully fun, playful and creative 2009!!!
Happy New Year everyone!
Thanks for everything Leah!
Tammy

Posted by: Tammy | Dec 29, 2008 at 4:21 pm |

Wonderful post! This is truly what Creative Every Day inspiration can do. I’m looking forward to a second year!

Posted by: Rebecca | Dec 29, 2008 at 7:49 pm |

This was such an exciting post. I’m thrilled for G to be finding her voice & look forward to her being more public if that is what she desires.
I am also thrilled for Leah to be the enzyme in a pool of repressed, suppressed, etc. artists. I love the way we inspire & spur one another on.
Thank you.

Posted by: Regina | Dec 29, 2008 at 10:00 pm |

What a great post. I think G can be an inspiration to all of us. I am thrilled to be a part of this wonderful idea.

Posted by: Diane | Dec 29, 2008 at 10:19 pm |

Wow – very moving story – thanks for sharing this! And I wish we could get to know more about G… I hope she posts in 2009!

Posted by: Steve | Dec 29, 2008 at 10:37 pm |

Sigh…that was the BEST. Love, loved reading that this morning. I have you to thank too Leah for starting this group. I wouldn’t of make it a whole year without ya!
xxoo,
a.

Posted by: Andie | Dec 30, 2008 at 10:43 am |

Leah,

Thank you for sponsoring this wonderful challenge, it is a gift! I want to say to all of the participants . . .thank you for joining in, and helping people like me (and wonderful G – for helping me have the spirit to join in and comment)bring out a part of ourselves that only “artists” understand.

Blessings and Hugs
Renee

Posted by: Renee | Dec 31, 2008 at 4:53 pm |

G did a beautiful job writing this lovely letter! Very inspirational!

This past year has transformed me as well. I’d always been shy sharing my poetry, but now, I’ve grown along with sharing my work with others!

I think there’s an artist in all of us.