Artist's Way -- Chapter 3, week 1

The first time I attempted to work through The Artist's Way I never made it past Chapter 3.  In some ways this past week it feels as if I'm getting to the point where the teacher is going to have to make me stay after class to talk about my performance.  Of course, there is no teacher, or, rather, the teacher is me.  So what's my problem?  I've been having a hard time with the morning pages.  It's not that I don't like doing them.  I do like doing them.  It's just that other things have been getting in the way.  I had a few days this past week where I wasn't sleeping well and then I wasn't feeling well.  I've been worried about Holden and preoccupied for a number of reasons. 




He is feeling better now.  And so am I.  But on those other days, I chose sleep instead of writing my morning pages.  I've also let other responsibilities get in the way of my morning pages.  Something to work on.  Although taking a look at where your time goes was an exercise from Chapter 2, I spent some time this week working on that and trying to figure out whether I need a stricter schedule for myself.  I never feel like I have enough hours in the day.  And that wears on me.  I'm still not sure if a schedule would help or if I just need a shift in perspective.





As for Chapter 3, I read through it and started doing the exercises.  This time the exercises all seem fun and for the first time with this book, I'll probably do all of them.  It's interesting because the chapter itself seems pretty heavy.  Anger, the hand of God, shame, criticism.  I'm going to need to read through it again and really let the ideas stew.  One thing jumped out at me as I looked over my book before writing this post.  In the section about criticism there is a list of "rules of the road."  I circled #5: "Remember that even if you have made a truly rotten piece of art, it may be a necessary stepping-stone to your next work.  Art matures spasmodically and requires ugly-duckling growth stages."  What  a reassuring idea for someone who's learning to paint.





I have no photos from my artist date this week.  My artist date took place in the bathtub!  I've been realizing that I do not take enough time to nurture myself or to have fun, so I've been trying to work on that.  Here at the farm we have a large bathroom with a gorgeous clawfoot tub.  When we were looking at the house I practically swooned at the sight of it.  But irony of ironies, I almost never take baths in it and I love a good long soak.  In the almost a year that I've been here I've taken maybe three or four baths.  So I filled up the tub with lots of bubbles and I indulged, enjoying my lavender soap and peppermint shampoo.  I slipped beneath the water and let myself gently bob to the rhythm of my breath.  That's another thing I never do, consciously pay attention to my breath.  I finally gave my legs a thorough shaving (I always miss spots in my hurry in the shower) and sloughed the dead skin off my poor, neglected heals.  I emerged feeling so much better and not just because I was clean and smooth.






I have other things to share with you, including the fact that My Giant Strawberry is now on Facebook!!  But I'll save that for another day.

Comments

  1. You KNOW I´m giggling about the picture comment on your artist´s date, right? ;)
    It´s so good to read you got some private time to take care of yourself. Also that Holden is feeling better. ~gentle pat for him~
    About your FB page: I like you so much I liked you twice. :D

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  2. I love the sound of your artists date. I too love a claw foot bath. Thanks for sharing.

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  3. Sounds like a heavenly Artist's Date. I just scrubbed out my bathtub yesterday (hey, that is serendipity, isn't it? A gift from the Universe to prepare me for this moment!)....Hmmmmm.....I don't have any bubble bath, but I do have some epsom salts to soak in, and some Dr. Bronner's lavender liquid soap..... I think I am off to the drugstore in search of a pumice stone for my poor dry feetsies!

    I've suggested this to others; I'll suggest it to you too: Maybe morning is just not a good time for you to write. Maybe you would do better with Afternoon Pages, or Evening Pages? Be flexible, and open to what presents itself.

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  4. I recently started a "creative schedule" for myself- Monday: writing blog posts + taking care of Etsy, Tues: watercolors, Wed: Oils, Thurs: Jewelry. So far, it's helped a lot in the focus department (otherwise I go from task to task to task never completing anything). #5 is sooo true and something I've been trying to keep in mind lately too. I can't just "arrive" at some magical spot without having went through all the good and bad on the way there.

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  5. Hi Anne, this is my first visit to your beautiful blog. I love that you let yourself sleep when you felt you needed it, it's easy to feel like we should always be doing more. Sometimes a nice soak it the prefect remedy. Oh how I wish for a big tub :) lol So far chapter 3 is my favorite too. I can't wait to hear how it went for you. Best, Tia

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  6. What a wonderful artist date! All artists need time to rest and rejuvenate so new ideas can percolate and there's no better place than a bubble-filled tub to relax :)

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  7. ooooh exciting facebook news :) Big "whoop whoop" hugs :)
    Those photos are just gorgeous and very impressive given they were taken from the insides of a clawfoot tub haha!
    You have given me the proverbial finger wag as I need to honor myself a little bit more too....thankyou :)x

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  8. I'm already planning my next super lazy (yet super awesome) artist date. Stay tuned...

    Thanks for all the encouragement.

    Oh, and as for morning pages at another time of day... I've tried it, but I'm crap at fending off distractions. Sitting in bed after coming in from letting Holden out is really the best option. Gotta just make sure I do it!

    And Kerry... you are brilliant. I'm working on a schedule now. :)

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  9. I have been having an increasingly hard time with getting myself to do my morning pages, as well. It's really a tight squeeze getting them in before work and I've been really tempted to skip them quite a few times in the past week, especially. But then I would feel guilty, so I have made myself do them. Except these last 2 days. I am afraid that if I keep skipping them, I'll lose momentum and then stop doing them altogether.

    I also agree that the exercises in this chapter were the funnest yet! I had so much fun with the Detective work exercise especially!

    What a really good Artist's Date idea! Especially wonderful in a beautiful antique bathtub! I haven't taken a bath in eons and i was big into bubble baths and candles around the tub and really pampering myself.

    Glad to hear Holden is better and that you can rest easier now. I've "Liked" your FB page and will try and drop by. I had been on FB before, left, and came back, too. But I never did get into making it a regular thing. It just won't stick for me. I do check in from time to time.

    Wishing you a very good and much more restful week ahead!

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