Kat Eye Studio

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The Power of Persistence

Nothing in this world can take the place of Persistance.
Talent will not; nothing is more commonplace than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistance and Determination alone are omnipotent.
                                                   – Calvin Coolidge

Isn’t that a wonderful messsage? Persistance is the key. You might not be the most talented, a genius, have the “right” education… but none of those things in itself is the key to success. It is true isn’t it? So when we tell ourselves that we don’t have what it takes to reach our dreams, when we compare to others and say “I don’t have the education” or “They are so much more talented,” we need to stop and remember this message:

“Persistance and Determination alone are omnipotent.”

And continue working onward, upward toward our dreams.

P.S. Today is one of those “out of the blue” blog posts, that I find myself drawn to writing instead of what was planned. Maybe I’ll be inspired to write about Oktoberfest tomorrow. 🙂

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If Not Now, When?

I love this field of flowers under the trees in Parco di Monza by our home here in Italy. They are long gone now, they are only around for a brief time in the spring. As fall approachs and these trees are about to change their color and lose their leaves, and the bed of flowers has become mown grass. I met my intention to photograph them this year, since I missed them the first spring we arrived in Italy. Who knows what next spring will bring, my last spring here. Maybe there will be freak weather that prevents them from blooming, and this will have been my only opportunity. I’m glad I caught them while I had the chance.
Capturing these flowers is part of what I am calling a “no regrets” year. With limited time left on my work assignment in Italy, we return to the US next July, I have made a personal resolution that I will go home with no regrets. I don’t want to sit down, years from now and say, “I wish I had done… whatever… while we were in Italy.” Sure, there will always be ideas I have later, places I will see in pictures later and wish I had visited while I was here, but this “no regrets” year is about what I know now. If there is something I want to do now, I am doing it. If there is someplace I want to go while I’m here in Europe, I am going. If there is someone I need to meet (all these wonderful online friends!), I’m going to make every possible effort to meet them in person.
So this weekend, part of my “no regrets” year, I have a special trip planned. Just me, my camera and Paris art museums. I’ve been wanting to go there and just revel in the amazing art that is available, all in one city. To just have a little bit of time, where I plot my course for a day or two, recharge and refill the creative well on my own. Along with that blissful plan, I’m doing a nighttime photo tour with a professional photographer – absolute, and total, heaven.

I know that the pace of travel and activity and spending (!) I currently have is not sustainable long term. In a way, that’s the beauty of this situation too, it isn’t long term. There is a definite end, so I don’t have to keep anything in reserve. I also know that even with this intention I have for the year, I will not be able to go everywhere, do everything, meet everyone on my list. But I’ll be so, so much closer to it, and I’ll have no regrets.

I have actually been blessed by having this limited time, in a positive way. To have my eyes opened without having something like a life-threatening illness for me or a loved one. It is easy to see, how in the course of our ever day life, how we put things off. We say… We’ll go visit that place next month, and it turns into next year. Let’s get together for coffee sometime, and weeks go by. I should really look into that organization, and before you know it the event you were interested in is over. Life picks us up, swirls us around in the every day, and we lose our hold on the tether of our intentions. Before we know it, we’re swept along and away from what we had planned.
Think about this in your every day life. Is there one small thing you want to do, one place to visit close by that you’ve been putting off, one friend you want to meet for coffee but haven’t found the time? Do it. Have your own “no regrets” day or week, living in the moment as if you have limited time. Because the reality is, we do have limited time. It’s just not always so obvious, as it is to me right now.
And who knows, you might just find that you have spring flowers to enjoy, come fall. 

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Reflecting on Growth

Sometimes, something new comes along that shakes up your comfortable little world. Sometimes that something is “bad” – a crisis of some sort – but sometimes it’s “good.” Either one can shake things up. I’m experiencing a “good” shake up right now, with joining the Mortal Muses. I was working on my first post last night (to be posted tomorrow), and it was more challenging than I thought. It was a different way of working with photos and writing, it was uncomfortable, stretching me in different ways. It feels scary, putting myself out there to a new audience.

It made me realize that I have gotten comfortable here on my blog, with my photographs and words, with my routine every day. And that’s a great thing! There is a confidence and freedom that comes with knowing what I am going to do, how I want do it, and loving it each step of the way. But it is also good to stretch, to grow, to run up against those familiar old fears again and battle them down, to see things from a new angle. I can see that I need this new stretch, and it’s going to be good for me. We don’t grow by staying safe and comfortable.

I am reminded this morning that the right things always seem come along for me when I need them, when I am ready. I just have to be open to receiving their messages. Do you find that true for you too?

(Today’s photo from our hotel room in Bath, England. I love the multiple planes and angles that are visible in this image! Kind of looking inside out.)

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Light and Dark Places

Italy has changed me. It was so clear to me on our recent trip to Switzerland, where the perfectly clean and cared for towns were pretty, but not so inspiring to me artistically. Where was the texture, the peeling paint? Where was the reality, the truth? It seemed too perfect. Like a wall erected between me and the place. Just look at the pretty picture, admire the beauty, move on. Distracting me by the surface.

But what’s underneath the surface? That’s what I want to know. What is it like inside? What I see in the buildings and towns I visit is a metaphor for what is going on inside of me. I could have the perfect, controlled, beautiful exterior, but at what internal cost? Perhaps at the cost of creativity, the cost of self-expression. Or I can have an exterior that is not quite perfect, a little bit flawed, that doesn’t follow all the rules, but is full of internal life and energy. Allows for a creative expression of the self. But with that must come honesty, an awareness and acceptance of the flaws.

Which do I want?

It might seem an easy question, of course I want the texture, the energy, the life. I want all of the creativity that comes along with it. But to get that I have to truly recognize and accept the flaws, the light and dark places inside of me. Boy, is that hard.

I guess the fact that I’m recognizing this is a start. The fact that I’m seeing the light and dark both, choosing the texture and peeling paint, feels right. Feels real. And I am amazed at how, once again, I learn about myself through my art. I can’t hide when I express myself creatively, all of me is there, in the images I create. My photographs have something to show me, they show something of me, beyond the surface impressions.

Right now, they are showing me that my time in Italy has changed me. No doubt about it.

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Creative Contemplation

Don’t you love it when things in life come together? Everything right now for me is centering on the topic of creativity. Being aware of, responding to, listening to creative urges. Following my heart.

Recently, I’ve been inspired to write posts (yesterday and Friday) about creativity, exploring the process of being creative. These posts have come to me, come through me, as I sat down to write. No planning involved, just following where my heart led.

Yesterday, I posted a comment and link in response to a Shutter Sisters blog post, about a photograph that revealed more of me through the lens than I expected. That post from about a month ago, Create to Live, reveals my fundamental desire to create. Revisiting it reminded me of what is calling to my heart.

This morning, in looking for some links to older blog posts for another project, I started going back in time. Back to over a year ago, before I was doing the photo-a-day on my blog. I found a couple of my earliest posts on following my creative urges, and the things I was learning about creativity at the time. I can see that I was just starting on the creative path, just beginning to listen to my heart.

Today, as part of a morning ritual of inspirational reading, I started the August section in Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy by Sarah Ban Breathnach. It’s all about creativity, as a “sacred conduit to your authentic self.” Sarah says this about expressing creativity, “When we choose to honor this priceless gift, we participate in the re-creation of the world. When we follow our authentic path with love, embracing our creative impulses, we live truth even if what we think we’re doing is just planting a flower bed, cooking a meal, nuturing a child, editing a book, producting a television show, sewing a curtain, writing a brief, painting a pictures, teaching a craft, composing a song, or closing a deal.” That resonated with me… following our heart, through creativity, is a positive gift to the world.

So, what is it I’m getting out of all of this? A reminder that this creative journey is ongoing, I’ve been on it for a while. An acknowledgement of the progress I’ve made since the start. A realization that I am following my heart, following the creative impulses, and they are leading me amazing places. Not only that, the more I practice, the easier it gets. I get an incredible sense of wonder and awe at the whole process!

And one last thought, one last question to answer… How does this photograph tie in to the whole thing? This is an image I captured when following a creative urge. No purpose other than that. I loved the light, the afterglow of the sunset, reflected on the lifeboat of the ferry we took from Italy to Croatia. I love the composition. It gives me a sense of calm, contemplation, and of beauty in the unexpected. I followed my heart, and was rewarded. I’m starting to learn, it’s what happens every time!

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Blank Slate

Every morning, I come to this point, with a blank slate. An empty page, devoid of image or words. Ready to write, ready to receive some inspiration for the day. Sometimes, I have an idea of what I want to write, what photo I will select, before I sit down. Sometimes I don’t. And sometimes, even when I have an idea, I throw that idea out the window and just write whatever comes into my head at that moment. Post whatever picture calls to me. It’s become an interesting process, and I learn unexpected things from my photographs and my writing this way. A blank page becomes the window to my soul.

It’s one of the reasons I don’t write scheduled posts much while I’m on vacation. This is part of my daily practice of creativity, and I can’t seem to pre-schedule my future creativity. Sure, I could share pictures while I’m gone, but the magic of the daily choice, the daily contemplation that goes along with them is missing.

Do you have a daily creativity practice, that has become essential to your art? What is it, how did you find it? I’m curious how you practice your creativity, how you open that window to your soul.

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