Tuesday 31 March

It's Day 16 and, despite it having rained all day (at times it has been POURING great heavy drops that have made us feel even more marooned within our house) I am glad to report a good day. Manu has spent every spare moment with her nose in a book, and Keziah has been exploring online employment options.

I wonder who else has been struck by the flow of creativity that, like the rain hitting my window this afternoon, has been unleashed during this time of being otherwise restricted? It makes me think of the art processing I have facilitated during retreats - give people a time limit, or restrict them in some other way, and all kinds of inventiveness rises to the surface. Too much time, too many options, and we seem to second-guess ourselves or fritter away the opportunities.

Tim's lockdown birthday presented us with a creative focus. We made 50 pieces of bunting out of anything that was available, including the veggie burger packaging! Each piece included a photo of him on one side, and a word describing or affirming him on the other. It was fun to see how long it took him to take in all 50 birthday flags. I'm guessing they will be a fixture of our sitting room for a while yet.

Keziah's creative offering for Tim's birthday was somewhat more classy than my recycled cardboard bunting. She made a beautiful photo book from a selection of adventures spanning the last 5 decades.

Of course, there has been plenty of baking ... bread and rusks, birthday cake and black bean brownies, and all kinds of meals designed to keep us healthy and nourished, not to mention engaged around the dining table! The vegetarian/vegan reality in our home means more creativity is needed and today I made vegan cauliflower cheese. I wouldn't say it was my best creation, but I experimented with thickening the sauce with pureed sweet potato and all in all it was a win.

Rain notwithstanding, the garden offers plenty of opportunities for creativity. This little gate and garden sculpture, with the new planted raised beds beyond, have been a celebration of creativity that we have all enjoyed. Even the non-gardeners among us! 

Creativity makes us feel channelled rather than restricted, and makes of the world a landscape of possibilities rather than a place where we are denied our preferred choices. Where is your creativity finding space to flow these days? What have been your most enjoyable creative experiments, your unexpected wins, your won't-be-trying-that-agains?!