It has been some time since I’ve posted. Much has happened and most creatives will tell you that the longer you stay away from the work, the harder it is to return. In an inspired moment, I created this picture. This is how I see the path. A step is lit before us by a lantern held by an angel flying backwards. As we step into the light, we are shown the next step. Though much of the path is shrouded in shadows, we are guided. This is a path of trust, of intuition, of taking each step as guided.
I held this image in my mind’s eye for some time before creating it. All because of fear.
I am an avid learner, consuming books and classes in every spare moment. Most art courses I’ve watched begin the same way—they have been creating since they were a child. They either continued it into adulthood or they returned to it after some time away, but the process of creating itself remained positive. I have yet to hear a story similar to my own. I lost my creative story at the age of three, one of the few clear memories from my childhood. I abandoned and avoided art entirely until I was 24 and found the courage to buy my first sketchbook. I couldn’t see the artist within me, but the hunger to create remained.
Flash forward to age 42. After six and a half years of being a student, wife and mom, I walked the stage to receive my BA in graphic design. I achieved what I once believed I was incapable of—a college degree. I was one of ten achieving the honor of summa cum laude. I say that not to brag, but to encourage anyone considering this path. I grew up in a small southern town with a matching mindset. I was raised to believe my only purpose was to care for and please others at the expense of myself. Breaking free of that story was not easy, but it was possible. If I can do it, so can you.
Much focus over the last year has been given to producing an income to pay the bills. All the while, changes have been occurring within me as my healing journey continues. My word for 2024 is listen, one that has come up repeatedly over the last several months as a continued nudge to trust myself. In that respect, I am discontinuing my coaching services and returning to the practice of writing and illustration. There are gifts within I have yet to discover.
I would love to hear from anyone on a creative journey, whether you have healed and reclaimed the creator within you or you feel an insistent nudge to begin. I often say one must “trust the nudge.” So let's begin.
Sending light to all my fellow sojourners,
KB