Dear Kathryn Elizabeth Goldin (aka Me),
I am writing to complain about a certain low-point you hit on Saturday afternoon. I do not want to go into details in such a public forum, but it was not pretty and is not allowed. Convincing yourself you are not good enough is unhelpful and pointless.
In future, I want you to remember the following:
1. Realise that creativity is all around us and you are already "doing it". You say often and loudly that the simple act of making dinner is a creative act...so is every seed planted and garden tended. Every song sung in the shower and every train drawn in the bath. Not to mention every time you take a step back and bask in the unbelievable beauty of a small boy. Use these moments and revel in the creativity in everyday things. See it everywhere.
Photo by Kevin
2. Forgive your mistakes. Ok, here we are self talking to self and the hard truth is your crochet is often mediocre. You are not a great seamstress all the time. Some of your cooking fails and your knitting is...best not mentioned. What you have, your gift, is a passion for making. When you get frustrated with a crooked seam, a dropped stitch or other mistake, just remember that its the process you love so deeply, not necessarily the product. You will do better next time (or the time after that). No one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. Let it go.
3. Keep lists of things you have done. Now, I know, being Virgo, that lists are your thing. But, you get so lost in the reams of the things you haven't done that you all too quickly forget the things you have completed. This virtual space provides some of that capturing, but remember your notebook at your desk that lists the projects you have completed (or almost completed and now await some final touch that you may or may not do). Next to each project, remember to leave a note about something you learned, relearned, re-re-relearned from doing that project.
4. Value creativity above all else. Yes. Laundry has to be done, bills have to be paid, floors have to be mopped. But you must instil in your friends that you need a 30 minute warning phone call before they pop by. And remember, it is a public service to society to have the house that makes other people feel better about the state of theirs.
5. Spend more time making than looking. Now, I know this is a hard one for you. But in the balance of things, making one thing is MUCH better than looking at 600 things you will never be able to finish on Whip Up or One Pretty Thing. Have faith that if inspiration is meant to find you, it will.
6. Make something every day. Even if it is just dinner.
Love, YourSelf.
