Saturday Story

Today I thought I would look at the letter M.  Are there particular stories in your life concerning words beginning with M?  We all have memories - good memories, bad memories!

All the travel posts on this blog are memories.  Here's a photo of Mount Hood from 2017

Obviously there are real mountains, but there are also metaphorical mountains in our lives.  There's the saying: Don't make a mountain out of molehill.

It seems to me that we can easily make mountains.  We let our thoughts run riot and exaggerate nothing into something.  We can take someone's comments about our work and make it into a rejection of us. Not liking our work is not the same as not liking us as a person.

Over the years I have chase after techniques in the hope of finding my voice - my style.  I've taken part in workshops online and in person.  Good ones, poor ones and great ones!  Basically in search of me in my work.  It's good to know techniques, but it's even better to actually make work.   It's good to find out what is a good fit for me.  I listened to this great podcast this week: Art Juice - Is Your Personality in Your Art

One of the most helpful things I have found is mentoring.   Christine Chester is an excellent mentor.  Here are the memories of the mentoring session.

Currently I am over half way through a year of faith based creative expression mentoring with Matt Tommey.  This has been an excellent way to consolidate the things I have learned over the years, combining my faith with creative practice.

Matt has an excellent podcast series plus a blog.

Thanks for joining me today
Bernice

A vision board or two

In our Word of the Year group it was suggested we looked back over 2020 and looked forward to the rest of the year.  Mary provided some great questions on her blog post 2020 Vision Board & Moving Forward.   Do have a look at them.

To be honest I didn't answer the questions, I just went for the vision board for my word: Walk.

I've missed walking alongside the canals during lockdown.  I found this great picture of the canal in the centre of Birmingham in the Ramblers magazine.

At the same time as the vision board came up as a topic for Living your Word, it came up in the course I am doing: Created to Thrive led by Matt Tommey.  The book is worth reading even if you don't do the course.

This 'board', (actually cardstock!), has two parts to it.  The lefthandside represents the role God has for me in encouraging creativity within my church, including running a community creative space. I had been wondering whether I was supposed to be building up a group of creative influencers within the church, running specific groups eg photography, writers etc but have had several confirmations this week that I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing.

On the right is some of the work I have done in the last couple of years. Over the last six months, (regular readers will have noticed), I have been querying whether this was the creative work I was supposed to be doing. What was my style/voice etc? But as I was working in the workbook for the course, I felt God say I was to carry on with what I was doing, to make more pieces (fabric and/or paper) to bring glory to Him.

So that's what I'm going to do.  Make books, small hangings and anything else I'm inspired to make.  I'll share what I make here, as always!

Thanks for joining me today.
Bernice

Living Your Word 2020

My friends Valerie Sjodin and Mary Brack, and I share insights through blog posts for creatively living a word of the year. In our Facebook group, we encourage one another by posting questions and prompts to inspire living out a word focus, keeping a journal etc. It is a safe place to ask for prayer and support. If you would like to connect with others in creative ways about living your word, you can ask to join our Living Your Word of the Year 2020 by clicking on the link below.

Join our Facebook group: Living Your Word of the Year

On social media: #livingyourword2020

To ensure you get updates from Valerie, Mary & I why not subscribe to our blogs.
Mary: www.foundonbrighton.com
Valerie: www.valeriesjodin.com/blog
This one: www.newlycreative.com

Just Do It

Did you know that my name, Bernice, comes from Berenike which means Bringer of Victory.  It's also where Nike, the footwear company, gets its name from.  Valerie Sjodin made this piece of artwork for me.

If you are a regular reader you will know that I used to be addicted to online courses and that I tried to give them up.  In their place I became addicted to in-person workshops.  I was trying to give them up when I had to go cold turkey in March due to them all being cancelled.

I'm sure you'll guess what came next.  Yes, I succumbed to the delights of online courses.  However rather than them being particularly art or textile based, I signed up for one on developing creativity and one called 30 days to Purposeful Habits.  I'm half way through both.  And have signed up for a creativity based one starting next week.

Through all these courses I am trying to find out why I work, or don't work, the way I do.  I haven't struggled with not being creative through lockdown, because I wasn't being particularly creative before.  There has been some creativity simmering away below the surface - the last few blogposts on zine making for example.  And I have kept up my Word of the Year Journal.  The most creative thing in that is using different coloured pens and some washi tape!

So what have I found out so far?

That I actually need a schedule and deadlines.   When I retired I had a mini rebellion about schedules.  From childhood my life was scheduled around school timetables.  More timetables as a teacher and then again as a parent.  So when I stopped working I decided I should do without and be as free as a bird!

And how has that worked out for you you might be asking.

Not at all well really.  I don't get much done and I don't feel any sense of satisfaction with some of my days.

The course that officially starts next week had an opening exercise of a piece of work that captured the essence of my life's journey so far.  In doing the two recent courses I became very aware that I keep asking the same questions maybe at a different level on a metaphorical spiral staircase.  I learn a little each time but never make big breakthroughs.

I think it's time to make the breakthrough.

One of the things I have also realised is I should stop hesitating and 'just do it!'

Thanks for joining me today

Bernice