Category: Art

Creativity on the Loose

A couple of exercises for us all:
Our eyes tell us the outlines of the world, and our minds supply the stories. Look around you, wherever you are. Pay close attention. What abstracts and descriptors appear within sight? Maybe there are poems, novels, and short stories to be written, or your vision calls you to art.

Secondly, I realize this year has been challenging, but think about your favorite part thus far. Create something that celebrates it. As a bonus, make a plan stating how you can bring about such pleasure again. Try to facilitate what lights up your soul.

Most of my day so far was spent copy editing, but I finished.

If you look around Haphazard Creative, you may notice I made some changes. I tried to streamline the widgets, and I updated the About page.

I put Halloween decor out on September 1 – but decided to bring some here today. I like all the smiles of Halloween; maybe you do too.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Speak Living

When opportunity presents
We may speak encouragement
Into another person –
Everyone needs inspiration,
Kindness, generosity;
Love is a gift, blessing
The giver, as much as
The one who gathers it in.
Positive words can
Change lives weighted by despair,
Teaching the act of living,
Being is worthwhile to keep
Doing, happening, growing.
Personhood is precious,
Belonging is a treasure,
Life is made to pour out –
In all directions, enriching,
Motivating, teaching, through
Creative effort, how wonder
Becomes an existential capability
In each moment, place, thing,
Ever proposed and accomplished.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Not Afraid

We, the broken, open,
Gather, but loosely together,
A tribe rejected, remote,
Whose names history washed
Free of whatever remains.
One – another – we leave behind
The safety of the riverbank,
Slipping beneath the surface
Of believing, ridding our souls
Of blame, desertion, fear, shame,
Joining the rushing current, present,
Evicting the ghosts who pressed
Us with doubt into inaction.
We become those who call down
Future blessing with courage, desire,
Lightning accompanies our motion,
We face forward, countenances
Of fire, burning with conviction
Knowing each one has value
In reality, creating radiant truth,
Restoring liberty through LOVE.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan

Ready, Set, Klutz

I am a bit of a pen collector, even an aficionado, but do not trust me with fountain pens. I caution you to steer clear when I am in possession of one of these wondrous instruments.

Moments ago, I intended to remove the cap and use my Moonman, which fills with an eye-dropper, so it has a copious amount of ink. It did not go as planned. I instead opened the reservoir and poured ink all over the floor and myself, of course. As small as the ink containment is, it would seem the spatter would be minimal, but hey, black ink.

I have friends who are experts with fountain pens. I am not. I try. See, I want to be good with them, but I have horrendously comical experiences with them at almost every attempt.

I get almost the same results with rollerball pens, and I make less mess. I will not give up on the fountains; I will get okay with this; it is pens – I do ink pens.

As a prompt: Do you have a tool that defies your best efforts? Create something to celebrate your relationship.

© Jo Ann J. A. Jordan