So much of my life lately has been busy for the sake of being busy. As an artist, it’s easy to trick yourself into thinking that the more you do, the more you will receive. Sometimes that’s really not the case. Creating something with a mind of distraction is even worse than not creating anything at all.
I feel like I always say this, but I’ve been very stuck lately. I have things I want to do, but none of it seem to make me energized, rather it makes me feel like a huge weight is on my shoulders, as more and more people want to support me and use my artistic energies to good use. I appreciate all of this of course but, as a former anxious Hermit that never left her house because of all the drama, Ive found it hard to keep the momentum going on what is so far a very vibrant artistic journey.
The paradox of wanting to be a full time artist is that our craft relies heavily on an empty mind, egoless spirit and presence, yet at the same time the business of art pulls and pulls to take this all away from us, driving us into mind spirals of how we should market or brand our “product”.
I am in no way complaining or saying that I do not want to do it. It is more so the obstacles that come in the way that make me overwhelmed and away from my center of purpose. Why did I start this in the first place ? How can I transition into making art solely for myself to making art for others? How can I create systems for myself so that I can use my creative energies to good use for this society?
These are some of the questions I return to on a daily, even hourly, basis.
Amidst this chaos in my mind, I came across a video
it’s about a Taoist concept called “Wu-Wei” which is basically allowing things to happen , acting without the pressure of outcome in mind and letting nature take its course.
At the very core of it, that is what we are. We are a part of nature. We will one day return to nature and rejoin the cycle of life. Once we slow down and stop checking our notifications every three minutes and allow things to fold.
There have been and will be things in the future that will not work out. There will be things that are a burden at the time but eventually do end up working out. From all the things we know about life, we know one thing for sure and that is that the unpredictable is always possible.
To resist, to go against the current of how you are genuinely feeling, what you want to do and what you end up doing will block the blessings of the unpredictable and unimaginable.
Follow the course of your life, your body mind and soul will tell you all you need to know about how to move forward.