Moving Beyond Our Hurts

Pricked finger

Reaching for a rose
Pricked by the well-hidden thorn
Blood pours from the wound,
Just as the heart when rebuffed
Becomes a festering sore.

Only sheer strength, love,
Can heal spirit when we lose
Hope to carry on,
We must create new meaning,
New reasons for survival.

Each one of us can
Turn our failure, loss, defeat,
Into beginnings
That take us from one chapter
To another, holding dreams.

We are stars, windows
Lit by candles, captives freed,
Joy embodied, friends
To be discovered, visions
Of success, hope; creatives.

We can change our world
Molding it into something
Representing love,
Challenging others to make
A difference with their lives.

We may be tiny
Compared to the universe,
But our lives matter;
Every one significant
Filled with creativity.

Our festering sores
When exposed, opened, revealed
To the light of love
Can heal, making us become
Ambassadors of great joy.

In situations
We can choose dreams or darkness,
We create our lives;
With every breath, heartbeat,
Possibility arrives.

We must reach beyond
What we imagine limits
Us, becoming more
So our dreams surround our hope
Creating shared happiness.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan
Friday, September 8, 2017

It’s a wrap

Believe In Your Dreams Coloring Page0001

This is an art activity anyone can handle. Next time there is a large piece of packing paper, or you could get butcher paper, or really any huge piece of paper remember this use for it. You may need some art supplies if you do not collect them as nobody we will mention does. Ideally, you would gather watercolors, and it can be the kid version, or markers, or crayons, or colored pencils, you can see where I am going with this, just some colored supplies.

Smooth the paper out on a flat surface and choose the more textured side. The idea is to create something colorful that covers the whole sheet. You can simply spread colors around and blend as you wish, or you can draw and color patterns or scenes or characters, anything is fine. Your imagination is your guide. This will take a little time so choose when you can spare as much as an hour, maybe more.

You might consider how you will use your finished creative project. My first suggestion is as wrapping paper. When you determine your purpose, you will probably better know your color scheme, or you may decide to go with something totally unique. You are always in charge of your creativity, no one can boss your muse. We each have ultimate freedom in how we decide to create.

I do not have a finished project like this to show, but I am sure you can come up with something you enjoy making.

A note on the coloring page. My artistic abilities were once more refined, but I have neglected drawing for some time, and I need practice. This is why I stress daily creative work. Use it, or lose it.

Thank you for visiting Haphazard Creative. I hope you enjoyed your stay and will come again soon. There is a follow button to your right and comments make my day. Take care and be busy creating!

Creative Inspirations

Butterfly & Flowers_edited

We are all creative, having the ability to make beautiful things which we may share with the world. I encourage you to make an effort to use your creativity daily. This is doable, no matter your skill level. If you are having problems imagining a starting point, perhaps you will find the following prompts helpful. Only take the suggestion and allow yourself to begin the work. Do not let your inner critic stifle your creative impulse. You can do anything you choose. There are prompts enough to jumpstart your brain.

You are a gift from the hand of the Creator… Be aware of your incredible importance.
Nothing you do can separate you from love.
Your thoughts are precious… Treat them with tender care.
Today could be “The Day”…
Say “I Love You” often. It costs nothing and has significant benefits.
Time spent enriching your mind is never wasted. You were meant to grow in wisdom and grace.
Breathe deeply and relax. Give yourself permission to live in happiness.
Fight negative thoughts, those waste valuable energy given you for good.
Give your face a break and enhance your day… SMILE!
Complete the sentence… Today, I am grateful:
Be glad cows cannot fly… Now, why were you complaining?
Be alert to the beauty that surrounds you everywhere and at all times.
What gives you pleasure? Do it today…
Don’t say can’t. You have unlimited potential to create the life you want.
Believe in yourself, if you fail to do this, no one else will believe in you.
Make a list of your blessings. Go back and read it often.
Remember the last time you cried? Honor your sorrow and pain.
If you died… How would people remember you?
What is holy in your existence? Share that with someone you love.
Listen to your favorite song. Why do you love it?
Wherever you live, honor your place by creating a haven of peace.
Light a candle…
Write down your goals… Know what is most important to you.
Respect your gifts and employ them as often as possible.
Send cards… Something about personal mail brightens a dull day.
Remember “Please” is a magical word.

Have fun creating!

I wrote these up in a journal in the nineties and have since compiled some into lists. I hope you find them useful. Thank you for visiting Haphazard Creative. To your right is a follow button and comments are always welcome. Please visit again soon and take care.

Did you create, today?

JoAnnJordan_Conference Center_edited_monochrome

Something often overlooked by creatives, including myself, is that the more we exercise our creative impulse, the easier it becomes to continue.

If we are writers, we need to get some words in written form every day. Thinking about it is not enough, we need to work. It does not have to be 5,000 words, try 100. When doing it, we are allowed to write the most awful stuff ever. No one else has to see it. It is just letting the writer within know work must be done consistently. If it is done for some time, the writing improves, the length increases and projects can be completed. Almost all successful writers spend time writing daily. We can start with a minimum that suits us and add minutes until we find our upper limit.

If we are photographers, we should get our cameras in action each day. We do not have to travel to scenic spots. Take pictures of the kids, pets, yard, objects around the home, selfies, whatever catches the fancy. As I wrote in another post, we should evaluate what we see and work it to the most advantageous position we can. As with the writing, all the photos we take are not for public consumption, some are learning experiments. Editing is something we should also practice often. All editing programs require skill and familiarity to become adept. We cannot expect to be experts without trial and error.

If we are artists, at least doodling is required daily. We learn composition, shading, positioning, vanishing points, more stable lines, better collage, how to use found items to create effects, mixed media, modeling clay, sculpture, and we could fill the day with different art forms, but all require an investment of time for us to make a significant improvement. This does not have to be shown to a living soul. It is our own practice to make us what we want to be. If we do it a while doing art will become easier, and our skill will become legendary.

Even if we create something monstrously wrong, if we do the work improvement will occur eventually. It is hoped that this encourages and inspires you to make creativity part of every day.

Thank you for visiting Haphazard Creative and come back soon. There is a follow button, please use it. Comments are always welcome. Take care.