[L, diary, ephēmeris] 1) BLOG

"What you produce is not always sacred...What is sacred is the time you spend working on the project, and what that time does to expand your imagination, and what that expanded imagination does to transform your life."

 

The above quote came from the book my niece, Alison, recently sent to me:  

BIG MAGIC, Creative Living Beyond Fear, by Elizabeth Gilbert. 

 

When I read it, I immediately put down the book and opened the laptop in order to make a quick post of it to my home page, which I've begun using somewhat like one of the social media platforms I don't know much about, other than they are quickie ways to connect.

 

I have not used any of them because I'm not very good at quickie anything.  Generally, I have to labor to unearth what it is I want to say or accomplish; the lasting effects of a perfectionist mother impatient with young children's learning curves. Sigh.

 

However, ingrained ways can be modified, I'm happy to report, which is why I responded so strongly to Gilbert's observation about being creative...it is exactly what I persist in conveying every Saturday with whomever joins us for the afternoons of discovering our collectively innate creativity.

 

It is exactly what gave me the courage to post something further to this site's navigation bar category, SATURDAY ART. 

 

When I'd set up the new format, several months ago, I'd had my biggest hopes for showcasing the truly delightful artworks being produced by children and adults who swore they had no abilities for art.  But then the sheer variety of what we were doing overwhelmed me...I wanted to make short videos rather than still photos, wanted readers to feel they were participating, too...but all that took time to do right, and DOING IT RIGHT (NOW!) became a taskmaster I couldn't face.

 

So let me say right now that I'm determined to not let that old buggaboo--needing to be PERFECT--keep me from practicing what I preach to the others:  it's okay to not be perfectly skilled--ever. 

 

It's GOOD to make imperfect things because that's how we learn and grow and make our lives happier and more rewarding. 

 

Maybe not perfect, but as deeply rewarding as if it were. 

 

And who's to decide Chay Chay's little sculpture isn't perfect?

 

 

 

INSIDE & OUTSIDE

Day 8's challenge, INSIDE, was the first time I realized I could combine two days into one:

"The sensitive vibrating string oscillates and results for a long time after one has plucked it.  It’s this oscillation, this sort of inevitable resonance, that holds the present object, while our understanding is busy with the quality which is appropriate to it…vibrating strings have yet another property—to make other strings quiver. And thus the first idea recalls a second, and those two a third, then all three a fourth, and so it goes, without our being able to set a limit the ideas that are aroused and linked in a philosopher who meditates or listens to himself in darkness and silence."

GETTING IN THE GROOVE -edited by Sally Davies

I thought I was very clever to take a photo of a hand-painted plate of an outside (Day 9), waterfront cafe scene, hanging inside (Day 8) on the cabinside of a boat. It quickly disposed of two days' challenges.  Plus, I loved the intricate harmony of multiple perspectives it offered.

And, just  like the vibrating strings of musical resonance, a quivering which arouses further harmonies, the sudden recognition of there being a porthole alongside the plate with it's own view of outside from inside...well, oh MY!

But what a challenge THAT was to capture.  The exposures needed for the inside plate caused over-exposure to the scene through the porthole, while a correct exposure for the sunlit yacht outside then underexposed everything inside PILAR.  Obviously, Photoshop was needed to combine the two.  Which then began a time-consuming nightmare of having to recall how to use the software from the dim recesses of what's left of my brain.  Too clever for my own good, wasn't I?

But it worked.  Eventually.  Not perfectly, the yacht through the porthole was still over-exposed, but then--this was just an exercise to stretch one's self. Next time, and then the next time after that, and so on...it would improve.  It was/is so wonderful to feel the hesitant baby steps of developing skills begin to have direction, strength, and joyful (even if possibly premature) confidence.

Too long have I meant to begin sharing some of the delight I enjoyed while taking up the challenge of photographing a specific topic each day, five months ago.  It took a surprising amount of time and energy, so when completed (and full focus returned to work on PILAR), I had hoped that simply fiddling with the Events page would allow the series of photos to be seen as Past Events until I could blog about it. But that hasn't worked too well. 

Here's the direct link to make it easy if curious to see them before I begin posting why some of the photos were taken (Day 17), how the process evolved (Day29 & 30), challenges surmounted (Day 8 & 9), and not a few unexpected insights revealed. 

The morning I took Day 1 photo (Up Close), I had no idea I'd just begun the challenge...I'd just rolled out of bed, put the coffee water on and then stepped into the bathroom ('head'), as usual, and startled myself with a glance in the mirror, unexpectedly thinking, "Hey! YOU LOOK OKAY!" 

I did.  Amazing.  I laughed and decided to accept and celebrate it.  I took a Selfie.  NOT a common activity for me so I told myself it was a Portrait...a fun one with No meaning except it felt good.  Right.  Not to mention challenging.  

It was later that day when I saw the 31 Day Photo Challenge from Pinterest that it struck me I had already begun the first day's challenge with the portrait.  Easy!  I had a LOT of photos taken already that fit a few of the topics I saw, which would make it possible for me to participate.  Never mind that it was the middle of January and the thirty-one days began May 1st. It was just a poster-type announcement; an idea; a project for anytime, anyone, anywhere...     

If others are inspired by this, also, I recommend they do begin on the first day of the month.  It was confusing to do it otherwise.