I can see the light the the end of the tunnel. Week 10. Can you believe it? Only 2 more to go. It’s weird to think about how much has changed, just since the beginning of the year. And yet, I am so impatient. I want “things” to happen faster! I think Oh my goodness, it’s already the end of March. The only thing that’s flying by is time. I want to be able to make more art and more listings and there never seems to be enough time. So there’s a part of me that’s saying Whew! Two more weeks and I’m done with AW but really, what does that mean? I’m still doing the morning pages and the artist’s dates… but I think I’m ready for a break in unearthing crap. Seriously. What’s come up for me recently is FEAR. I can see how much it drives my choices and my behavior and I know that I’m kinda afraid every week of what unconscious limiting belief I’m surely going to discover this week! So yeah, I’m ready for a break from THAT.
This week, Rediscovering Our Sense of Self-Protection… is about being totally honest about the things we do to keep ourselves blocked. Our addictions. You don’t have to have a substance abuse problem to be an addict. There are those of us who are addicted to food or controlling what we eat, exercise, work, approval, worrying… all sorts of things that keep us from looking at the real stuff — the stuff that makes us uncomfortable. I think those things I listed are especially challenging because they are not “poison” the way alcohol or drugs are. You can rationalize them to say they are good for you… like a low carb diet or exercise or fulfilling all your obligations or being a hard worker. But I think Julia’s point is that we still have to protect our art and our creativity from falling to the bottom of our list. If I’ve learned anything from this process it’s that we have to prioritize the things that bring us joy. Period. Otherwise, what’s the point.
So here we are in Week 10. What’s coming up for you? Have you kept up with your morning pages and artist’s dates? How do you feeeeel?
The Artist’s Way Posts
Week 1: Recovering a Sense of Safety
Week 2: Recovering a Sense of Identity
Week 3: Recovering a Sense of Power
Week 4: Recovering a Sense of Integrity
Week 5: Recovering a Sense of Possibility
Week 6: Recovering a Sense of Abundance
Week 7: Recovering a Sense of Connection
Week 8: Recovering a Sense of Strength
Week 9: Recovering a Sense of Compassion
Week 10: Recovering a Sense of Self-Protection
Week 11: Recovering a Sense of Autonomy
Week 12: Recovering a Sense of Faith