Figuring Out Who I Am

This winter has been a weird one. It started out pretty mild, the February hit and it has almost been the slowest winter. Though it has been cold and snowy, this is the first winter that I have not hated. Believe me, I am ready for spring, but I am dealing with the winter much better this year. I even, at times, wish we could move to Maine instead of thinking about moving South. With Spring on it's way, and the rebirth of life and energy, with longer days, and increased warmth to the days, I am taking this time to do some soul searching and taking some time to figure out who I am and what I need. I am looking at spring as a time for me to make changes in my life and as a time for me to reduce the clutter in my life and start fresh, or rebirth myself into the person I want to be. How do I plan on doing this? First, I am starting a 21 day sugar cleanse tomorrow. Second, I will be going through my belongings and looking to see what I can reduce, either by donating or by trashing/recycling. Third, I will be spending time getting organized so that my life is not the caps that I have been living (no ones fault but my own). Fourth, I will be increasing (ok actually doing) exercise. Finally, though this process, I am hoping to become more aware of me and who I am and what I want out of my life. I love my life! I love being married and having kids. I don't like what I look like or the amount of time I spend on the computer. I don't like how lazy I have become. I don't like how crappy I eat sometimes. I don't like how cluttered my life has become or how disorganized I am. These are the changes I want to make. I want to look in the mirror and be happy with who I am. I know that if I'm healthy and I get moving, I'll be happy with me. I will start moving and feeling better and stronger. I will spend less time on the computer and Facebook and more time with my family and actually be creative. I will get rid of clutter and get myself organized. With doing the sugar detox, I am hoping that my head will clear. I am hoping that I will be able to follow through with things and do what I need to do. I will be sharing my 21 day detox here, the good, the bad , and the ugly. I will share the foods I eat and how I feel while decoding. I'm not going to give up my coffee, but I am going to limit it and try to decrease the amount of cream in my coffee. I think eating clean, eating less sugar, and eating less foods that turn to sugar is going to me, my body, and my spirit loads of good! Amy

Creativity

It took some time, but I have decided that I don't want to limit myself to one creative medium.  At one point, I was thinking that I need to focus on one area and become totally proficient and perfect at it, but I don't think that is what I want or need to do.  There are too many creative avenues that I want to experience and I can't imagine limiting myself to only one.

I do need to spend time getting proficient in each area that I like, but I don't have to only, for example, make quilts.  I can make paper, scrapbook, quill, make jewelry, create with clay, create with class.  I just need to spend time doing each of the things I like and learn how to get good at it.

There are some things that I am comfortable with my level of proficiency, but there are other areas that I need to learn more.  Some of it is just practice, and some of it I really need to learn more.  I am pretty proficient at making jewelry.  I'm sure there are a lot of things to learn but I know the basics.  I know the basics of quilting, but I could practice more.  I know the basics of hand sewing and embroidery but can practice more.  I know little to nothing about glass and want to learn more.  I feel very comfortable with making soap.  I feel pretty comfortable with most paper crafts, but I know that there is more that I want to learn.

When I thought of not creating with a certain medium or only creating with a specific medium, I just really got sad.  I love creating so much that I can't imagine limiting myself.  On the other hand, I also know that there are things that I don't enjoy as much.  Taking a painting class is ok, but it's not what makes me smile.  Playing with finer makes me smile.  Glass makes me smile.  Paper crafting, in all forms, makes me smile.  Clay makes me smile.  Photography makes me smile. And, finally, making jewelry makes me smile.

I like smiling!  Smiling is good for all of us!  I think we all need to figure out what makes us smile and then do it!  Now I just need to figure out how to do what makes me smile for a career!

Amy