When are You Most Creative?

I was reading Jessica Sprague’s blog this morning and, aside from the stress-induced meltdown recovery advice, I picked up something in her post that revealed something about me that I hadn’t really thought about before. 

She mentioned that she’d been staying up until around 1:30 in the morning for a long time now, working on a big project.  That didn’t seem strange to me.  Why didn’t that seem strange to me?!

As I thought about it more, I considered that an obvious solution would be to work more in the mornings or during the kids’ naps, or hire a “mother’s helper” for a few days, but those thoughts were quickly dismissed as unreasonable. 

Then it dawned on me - I’m not as creative in the daylight hours. 

I can write - I’m doing it right now and not doing too bad a job of it, if I do say so myself - but I can’t make a layout that “speaks” to me or create digital elements that I’d use on my own pages.  The daylight hours are for tedious work or work that requires my left brain - file organization, scanning, planning, list-making and even writing (I guess that’s the most creative thing I do, but it’s non-fiction).  It’s also for housework, running errands, being active - all the things that make sitting in my “creative space” torture for any extended amount of time.

In the dark, my dreams can come alive.  My senses are sharpened and I’m open to ideas.  I’m a risk-taker in the dark and I try things that I’d shake my head at in the light of day.

I think that’s why I love rainy days.  They make me feel wrapped in a cozy cocoon of half-dark that enables me to let go of stress and use all my talents.  Rainy days are for baking, making hearty, homemade soups, hot tea, great music, scented candles and scrapbooking the pages that make you step back and say, “Wow!”

So, when are you at your most creative?  Have you ever thought about it?

Tschüss!

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