Lose Yourself

 “Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” – Thomas Merton

I used to feel like I needed this for art. This is definitely not my intention as a writer, but I could see how it could happen unintentionally. I don’t know how I feel about the idea of losing ourselves. I could see finding new aspects of ourselves. I could see how writing helps you learn to let go of parts of yourself that don’t serve you anymore. But to lose yourself as a writer, I can’t really say that I agree.

Would love to hear your thoughts. Do you think writing enables you to find yourself and lose yourself?

Writing and Artists My Liberators

“Artistic expression is an avenue through which we can communicate our thoughts, emotions, and experiences. It allows us to transcend the limitations of language and connect with others on a deeper, more profound level.” -hovaveart.com

This is why I write. This is why I create anything at all. I get jumbled up in my words a lot, even in my writing, but the great thing about writing is that I can edit! I may feel like Moses did when the Good Lord called him to free the Israelites (for those that don’t know the story, he told the Good Lord that he was not “eloquent” enough in speech), but that doesn’t stop me from expressing myself as an artist, in the same way that it didn’t stop Moses from freeing the Israelites.

There’s no reason to bottle up all the things I can’t put into words. Writing and other artists are the liberators of my thoughts.

Art of Life

“The art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us.” — Gloria Steinem 

I’m not sure how I feel about this. I love the idea of relinquishing control while following my dreams. At the same time, I also appreciate the notion that I’m choosing the boring life, and if I wanted the wild nights, I could have that. Which means I’m maintaining some sort of control.

I do know creating situations where you intentionally make yourself suffer is not nearly as book-worthy as life’s natural forms of suffering. The nature of living has challenges that do the work for us. Why make it up when you can just tell the truth?

What do you think?

Can You Edit and Write Novels Simultaneously?

“You have to have chaos in you to give birth to a dancing star” -Friedrich Nietzsche

I like when I can start to feel my creative spark again. Only editing for so long really doused my fire. I think it would be best for me to edit one novel while also writing a new novel. Like an overlap. It seems more efficient than only doing one or the other. If this works for me, then I get to use both parts of my brain: the analytical side and the creative side. Seems like a good deal.

Do you edit one novel while you write the other? Or do you prefer doing one thing at a time?

But I Did It, Though.

“No one can build you the bridge on which you, and only you, must cross the river of life,” -Friedrich Nietzsche

We get the privilege to choose how we build our bridge in life. It is taking on that responsibility where we find meaning in our lives. I’ve done things very backward, and years ago, I did think I would have been further along than I am now. But I was reading a post from Gary Vaynerchuk the other day that choosing to go into a career later in life doesn’t mean you wasted your life. You chose to live, and that’s nothing to be ashamed of. For me, I chose to build a home and a family with what little I had. Now I get to focus on my career.

The point is that maybe the world is going to say I’m too old for college or to keep reaching for little career goals. They may say I wasted my life or even that I’m not a hard worker, but I’m going to tell you what: I’ve accomplished figuring out exactly what I don’t want. I’m not stuck with a degree I hate or a career that makes me want to run away from my life. I have a blossoming future ahead, but most importantly, I have the ability to appreciate the beauty that lies in my present moment.

This bridge may not be the fastest built, but it’s leading me where I want to go. And I take full responsibility for it.

Man’s Search for Meaning

“Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.”
― Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning

I just finished Man’s Search for Meaning, and my goodness, I did not come away as the same person that started that book. I have never experienced anything like it.

This book is about Viktor Frankl’s experience in concentration camps during WWII. He gives anecdotes and connects them to different psychological ideas. I am a lover of psychology, so that is a big draw for me; however, there’s plenty to take away from it.

Here’s a tidbit about Frankl from his website.

“With a lifetime that spanned most of the 20th Century, Viktor Emil Frankl (March 26, 1905 –September 2, 1997) was witness to a transformative period in world history. He is most known for being a Holocaust survivor, but in reality, this represented a short period in his long life. By the time he entered the concentration camps at 37 years old, he had already spent much of his adult life as a psychiatrist and neurologist, specializing in the treatment of suicidal patients. He had also developed his own psychotherapy….” Read more on his website

What do you think about the search for meaning?

Be Obscure

“God and other artists are always a little obscure.” -Oscar Wilde

This quote made me feel better because my goodness, do I love being home and away from it all. I know, I know, we gotta get out and socialize. But the amount of books I want to read, the writers’ lives I want to hear about, and the art I want to learn. I think people are important, but I gave a large portion of myself and my life to people I thought wouldn’t let me drown, and there I was gasping for air. That’s when I realized, fuck that shit. I’m going to sit in the dark corner of my room, paint my nails, eat snacks, and drink fun drinks. That makes it sound like it was an overnight occurrence.

It wasn’t.

Be obscure.

So, what makes you smile?

Art Solves 99% of my Problems

“Creativity is a drug I cannot live without.” – Cecil B. DeMille

I’m rolling my eyes at this quote because I don’t want to think of art as something I’m addicted to, but at the same time, I can’t function without it. It solves about 99% of my problems. Things are just a million times smoother when you can lay it all out on the table and find the beauty in it. The ability to find the beauty in our creations can be the most challenging part of it all. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a clear portrayal of a creator’s inability to find the beauty in their work, and spoiler alert that became Frankenstein’s own demise.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is one of my most favorite books. What are your favs? Do you have a top three?

Why Not Both

“It is not length of life, but depth of life.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

We could spend our time welcoming both a long and deep life. I look forward to having both. We don’t have to do this thing where we have to pick between two extremes. We can just live. If we want depth, we should welcome depth. I personally think it’s okay to desire a long life without placing too much stake in living forever. Our time will come eventually; that’s what we all know for sure. But to invest in long-term health, I think that’s beautiful. I think it’s quite artistic to want to live.