The Done Vs. The Doing

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scrapbooking

By Guest: Elizabeth Anne May

A few ladies gather around our little group of four at the end of the rows of tables. They oooooh and aaaah over our photos. They finger our ribbon and paper stacks. They stare curiously at the digital diecutting machine.

“Oh, I could never do this,” they say to us, and we laugh. We are scrapbookers, and to us –the minority here at this crafty ladies weekend retreat full of quilters – cropping photos and slicing paper is easy work. {On the other hand, we remain largely mystified by applique and seams.}

Yet, we find a common thread — if you’ll excuse the pun — in our work. It’s never done.

We quickly get around to commiserating about half-finished quilts, never-completed baby books, and the mass of daily life that piles up before we can get around to properly documenting it, or draping it in fabric.

But, is this obsession with getting the work done serving us well? Is the ambition to complete a list of projects, or play a constant game of catch-up even the point at all?

Actually, it’s not.

When I’m inspired and motivated to pursue my creativity – whether it be simple like a handmade card, or complex like a book proposal – I move all too quickly from the early bliss of making and start fervently straining toward the done.

I want the book read. The blog post written and published. The scrapbook album, completed. The necklace, assembled.

I sell myself out for the false sense of achievement derived from a neat row of to-do list checkmarks.

I forget the simple, sweet, pure joy of creating.

I recently completed the workshop-in-a-book The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. It’s packed full of advice, truth, and inspiration, but I love what she says in Chapter 8:

“Creativity lies not in the done, but in doing.”

She goes on to explain that when we focus on the process, our creative lives keep a sense of possibility and adventure. But, when we start to focus on the product, we have a creative breakdown. We start to do the math. And the bottom line isn’t pretty.

How long will this take?
Is it worth it?
Will I make enough money?

And, we freeze.

“Instead of allowing ourselves a creative journey, we focus on the length of the trip,” Julia says. “’It’s such a long way,’ we tell ourselves. It may be but, each day is just one more day with some motion in it, and that motion toward a goal is very enjoyable.”

While this certainly rings true for creativity, as we typically define it {painting, writing, crafts, composing music, etc.}, I would say the done vs. the doing can apply everywhere in our lives, because we are always in process.

Our work is always in process.
Our spiritual life is always in process.
Our personal relationships are always in process.

So, today, you might want to ask yourself:

What if I changed my view of life from a list of things to get done, to a process of doing and becoming?


JCP_7688-Edit-low2A bit about Elizabeth:

Elizabeth is passionate about seeking God, sharing beauty, and finding joy. A former farm girl and now wife and mom of three, she still loves a good wildflower bouquet and the leisure of long, woodsy walks. A journalist by training and marketing writer for the past 17 years, she quit her day job last fall to launch to pursue her God-sized dream of writing and encouraging women. She blogs at www.seasonswithsoul.com and can be found on Facebook and Twitter. She has been blogging about moms and creativity in her blog series, Spark Moms: Igniting Your Creative Passions for His Glory.

 

 

 

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