In all processes of creation, there are periods of downtime of quiet of rest of receiving. The creative process no less. In order to be productive, to produce creative work, we must spend time receiving, being receptive. The mutable waters of Pisces, and the cold snows of February, ask us to hunker down, hone in, hibernate, dream, daydream, listen, receive. This season and this weather asks us to tune inward, to consume more and output less. This doesn’t mean we can’t be productive… this means honoring the role of input and holding, of nurturing and germinating the seed beneath the soil, in the process of production. That it is neither less important nor less valuable than production; that it cannot be ignored and cannot be skipped.

In order to best support our processes of creation and productivity, we need to honor and value all the components of it, especially this part which gets little to no support from our Protestant-work-ethic-obsessed, late-capitalist, perpetual-economic-growth society. It is one of our jobs as artists, not just to write about the negative outcomes (disasters) of this way of being in relationship with the world, but to actively challenge it in how we live, how make community, how we make art. Commit to living out that promise, that challenge, in the next month.

But also recognize that every time you take care of yourself, you are getting paid. You are creating opportunities to give more and better versions of yourself and your talents and your gifts, in the future. You cannot produce and do and make and take care of others, unless you have nurtured your own body, mind, and creative self.

Remember PLEASURE. Pleasure leads to productivity. I promise. Pay attention to pleasure. Remember the pleasure of everyday things. Coffee, sun in the window, laughing with someone, cuddling on the couch, the feel of lying down at night, reading a book, writing in a notebook, watching stories spiral out, cooking. Even the things we forget are pleasurable. Driving in the car, washing dishes, sending emails. The way these things feel when you give them full attention, when you ALLOW and ENCOURAGE the pleasure to rise up, to return.

Remember the body, pay attention to the body, listen to the body.

Exercises:

1. Write a self-care plan/routine/ritual for the next month. What do you need? What do you need to receive, consume, dream, listen, hone in, hibernate more (literally or figuratively)? Where do you need to slow down, to listen, to be receptive? How can you honor this, through creating time and space for it? (i.e. Put it in your calendar! Do it now!)

2. Make a short list of things you can give or bring to yourself over the next two weeks.

3. Make a short list of things you can give or bring to your community (or someone particular in it), over the next two weeks.

4. What do your creative projects need? What do your characters need? How can you listen more, be more present, follow them, receive them more? Make a list of ways that you can honor and respect your projects and characters. Don’t make it about word counts and hours at the computer. Make it about relationship, presence, deep listening and receiving.

Photo by Kacper Szczechla on Unsplash