Yesterday was my birthday. I've been around long enough to get some wisdom under my belt. But, I learned that I still have so much more growing to do. After a glorious day of galavanting around Tuscany with my husband, I posted some pictures on Facebook to commemorate my special day. At the risk of tooting my own horn, I have to say that the pictures were lovely and the "likes" and comments came streaming in. But there was one particularly comment that rattled my chain. You see, to me, taking pictures is a great source of creativity. I'm no photographer. I've never taken a class and I've never had a good camera. It's just me, my iPhone, and my love for capturing beautiful images. Once I post the pictures I try to come up with creative captions to add my narrative to the experience. Adding my narrative to a pictures is like sprinkling cocoa on top of my cappuccino- it enhances the rich flavor. So, for me, posting pictures on Facebook is as creative an act a as painting, cooking, or planning a trip. This is the comment from my 80 year-old mom who saw my pictures on Facebook. Her words got me thinking. I replied with the first words that came to mind: But then that darn voice in my head, full of self-doubt, intervened. Who would read my work? There are already so many blogs out there. What would I have to offer that isn't already out there? My blog could never be as good as those that are already out there! My husband caught me as I began to fall down that rabbit hole of self-doubt, spewing all the reasons why I shouldn't do try out blogging. People would probably judge me or criticize my work. Maybe my ideas wouldn't be good enough. Would I even have anything of significance to say? Even when he encouraged me and reminded me of my brilliance. It's not easy for me to see myself through his eyes.so I continued down the path of negative self-talk. That is, until two people came to mind. Brene Brown is brilliant. Brene recently gave a fabulous talk on Netflix. That talk inspired me to watch a variety of YouTube videos that Brene had given on the power of vulnerability and being courageous, which really spoke to me on both a personal and professional level. I remembered Brene's words, "Creativity is born of vulnerability." I realized that I was avoiding doing something that I would mostly likely find compatible to my creative spirit just because I was afraid to make myself vulnerable.
My daughter, Jennifer, is a force of nature! Over the last year, she has gone through an unbelievable transformation after some huge personal challenges. Her choice to show up and keep going even after life's circumstances have knocked her down inspires me to be more daring in my choices. What a blessing to be able to learn from our own children. This doesn't mean that I'm going to go out and take up skydiving or go scale a mountain, but it does mean that I am going to make more courageous choices in terms of adding more value and fulfilment to my life. Do we stop ourselves from doing something we would love to do because we are afraid of what others think or might say? Do we avoid something that makes us happy because of the fear of failure? Today I choose to be courageous and try some things even if they make me a bit uncomfortable. This blog is my attempt at daring creatively.
Creatively, Cathy
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About CathyI'm a wife, mother, friend, educator, traveler, creator, tech lover, (and much more) inspired by Brene Brown's call to being vulnerable and daring greatly. Archives
May 2020
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