It's been a while...

...a year, more or less.  Most of you have probably forgotten who I am... and I don't blame you. About fifteen months ago, I became ill; it turned out to be ME, also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).  What that means, in practical terms, is that I don't have much energy, can't walk very far and can't work.  I mean that in the broadest of terms; I have my usual load of ideas, just don't want to do anything that even vaguely resembles art.  I've spent a year being very upset about that. My creativity has always been at the very heart of everything I've ever done; I'm not sure who I am without it.  After a lot of thought, though,  I've decided, though, that it's okay.

New Year is the traditional time for making changes...and here's mine.  I'm not going to make any art for a year...and I'm not going to get het up about it.  I have already given away a significant part of my stash, with more to go, and then I start on the non textile 'stuff', the paint, etc.  Whether I like it or not, my body craves rest... so I'm going to rest, body and mind.

I'm also going to get organised.  My theme for this year is a place for everything.  If it doesn't have a place, it leaves the building for a charity shop, a friend or whatever... as long as it doesn't stay here.  That's about simplification; I'm called 'artmixter' because I've always done lots of different things.  No more.  Clearing out will, I hope, clarify what I really want to do, so that when I'm well enough, I'll be able to do it, and do it well.  Whole heartedly.

So...that's the plan.  No blog for a year, either.

Ornaments...

are not usually in my repertoire, but I found myself merrily playing with this little one. I'm contemplating even smaller ones, to tie onto handbags with gold cord. I like working small; they are quick to make, and it's difficult to get too bored. And when I do, I go off and do something else.

I'm waiting for a skip to arrive, decluttering isn't done by halves around here. I had hoped it would arrive this morning, as we're more than ready for it, and close to the depot, to boot, but no such luck. So, in the meantime, I've filled the car with stuff for the charity shop (and I really mean filled...no room for anything else in the back). And I'm sitting here smelling the sweet potato and leek soup that we'll have for dinner, not to mention the chicken, slow cooking in garlic. No baking today, or at least, not yet...but there's time. Maybe some more of that lovely, moist gingerbread, a new recipe for me.

All of these activities are creative. Decluttering, cooking, baking, all require creative thought. How can I rearrange things so that I need less? How can I make these recipes taste better? I call it practical imagination, for those of us who are in creative denial. Ask yourself... what did I do today that was creative? And what will I do tomorrow? Creativity, or practical imagination, feeds the soul, just as the soup feeds the body. It doesn't have to be a giant step; just changing the balance of the ingredients to suit your taste is a creative act...just like changing the colours in a quilt pattern to suit you .