End of the Year Contest! - #115

This, the last post of 2019, is designed to give you a chance to use your creativity and imagination. Guess what the above image is or bestow it with a proper name.

Here's a hint: 

It was hiding in a head of cauliflower! 

We haven't given the creature a name so consider this a contest and send your entry by replying to this email or posting your guess in the comments section. All entries will be considered and appreciated. 

Happy New Year and thanks for reading, letting me know you read but don't comment, and actually commenting. Soon I will be moving this blog to my own website so stay tuned for directions on how to sign up to receive blog posts from the new site. I know some of you left a comment and I didn't receive it - so hopefully this will never happen again. I'm excited!

CLUE for richer living: In honor of my Dad, who would have been 99 years old this month, gaze at the horizon. It was one of his favorite things to do and why he didn't appreciate mountains that much. Can you see the horizon on a daily basis? Do you notice it? What does it feel like to see it?

Thanks for exploring the mystery - Nicky Mendenhall

Do You Love Year End Musings? - #114

I remember 2016 as the year my life lost clarity: diagnosed with NPH*, I closed my psychotherapy practice which meant premature retirement.

I remember 2017 as the year of transition: a recalcitrant patient, submitting to  surgery disguised as a procedure,  I then opened more fully to love from family and friends.

I remember 2018 as a year of healing: retirement enriched by a year of Master Mind, meeting other artists, working with book coach, discovering writing is satisfying.   

I will remember 2019 as a year of writing: completed rough draft of memoir describing my experience in Freudian psychoanalysis and beginning collaboration with Mary Nilsen, editor and publisher at Zion Press.

Typically I resist year end summaries. This year, however, it felt invigorating to see where I've been and the direction I am headed as we move into 2020. My challenge to you - what do you remember about the last few years? Can you name a theme for each year? Please share with me anything you discover. My clarity came from thinking about this and writing. I didn't realize some of this before. Or if you hate the whole idea, let me know that too. I used to resist breaking life into themes fiercely so I will undoubtedly understand.

Thanks for exploring the mystery - Nicky Mendenhall

CLUE for better living: Before you get out of bed in the morning, pull the covers back and stick up your legs/feet and arms/hands and circle them clockwise for a few moments and then counter clockwise. This will wake up you entire body! Try it and see if it jump-starts your day! Ruth, a favorite former Tai Chi teacher initially called this the dead bug but eventually renamed it as the tipped turtle. Thanks Ruth!

*Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus

Image: The Guardian sits shivering with a lap full of snow.

Do You Believe in Stages?- #113

Reopening the David Ulrich* book, inspiration for the recent series of posts on the stages of the creative process, my intent was to discover what he listed as the next stage.

Before I glanced at his answer, I was blindsided by a strong epiphany: 

There really are no hard and fast stages in the creative process. 

This quickly morphed into another epiphany: 

There really are no hard and fast stages in the grief process.  

Sheepishly I recalled posts 106-112. My chosen words undoubtedly implied there is "right" order for the creative process to unfold.  Even more sheepishly, I recalled how as a psychotherapist, I would hand out copies of a diagram, the Grief Wheel, which I proudly explained to my unsuspecting clients, meant they would feel their grief in these particular stages.

I think these epiphanies are also here to remind me there is no right way to do the holiday season. Each year is different. Each person is different. Does anything happen in preordained stages? Do you think things happen in predetermined stages? Let me know what you think!

Thanks for exploring the mystery - Nicky Mendenhall

CLUE for living a full life: Strike up a brief conversation with a person you ordinarily would not. See what happens and let me know. Did you learn something? What? Just a few words can change your mood or the mood of someone else, hopefully to a more positive state. 

IMAGE: This image of ice and mud was in my Dropbox account and I picked it out randomly. We've had some of each already this year!


* Zen Camera by David Ulrich. If you are curious what Ulrich proposed, he said responsibility and release were the final stages. 

* David Ulrich's Zen Camera is well worth a look if you want to read about the creative process and at the same time, learn about establishing a daily practice in photography.

Create A Healthy Body? - Stage 6 - #112

During my bi-weekly training session yesterday, my personal trainer said in a kind but firm voice:
     
"Tighten your abdominal muscles. Tuck in you glutes. Stand up straight." 

"Tighten your abdominal muscles. Tuck in your glutes. Stand up straight."

Yes, she had to say it more than once.  I'll spare you typing it as many times as she had to remind me. 

This post is a reminder, as we move to stage 6 of the creative process, that the creative process isn't just activated when we are writing or painting or composing a song.  Being in your body, paying attention to how you are in your body, is a creative endeavor.  Cooking is a creative act. Organizing is.

The creative process isn't for the faint of heart and this becomes more clear as the stages unfold. For example, Stage 6 calls for discipline. It takes discipline to engage the core, stand up straight, have good posture. The hardest part for me is remembering to pay attention.

I want the discipline to tighten my abdominal muscles, tuck in my glutes, and stand up straight when I am standing at the kitchen sink, bathroom sink, or sitting in my chair reading. What am I creating? A healthy body!

Do you consider your physical exercise a creative act? What is your most creative activity? Do you have discipline? Please let me know!

Thanks for exploring the mystery - Nicky Mendenhall

CLUE* for Living Your Best Life: Look around and find the oldest thing you see. Then look around and spot the newest. What, if anything, do they have in common? Which one will last longest?

IMAGE: The Guardian is happy I swept all the leaves off the deck!


* Idea from Rob Walker's The Art of Noticing