Daily Nourishment for September 25, 2024: Creating as an Act of Gratitude with Guidance from Dr. Chelsea Brooke Yarborough
Daily Nourishment Read Time: 45 seconds
Pause/Prompt/Practice Time: 15 minutes
“There's a Creator that detailed the wings of butterflies. Who am I not to offer my creativity to the planet as an act of gratitude for the one who detailed me?” - Dr. Chelsea Brooke Yarborough
Pause.
Take six deep breaths with a six-count inhale and a six-count exhale while looking at and meditating on the images of moth and butterfly wings in this article.
Prompt.
Read this quote from Dr. Chelsea Brooke Yarborough on how she can learn from other writers and their creative practices while still doing what she needs to do for herself (from the IG Live we did on the upcoming Spiritual Direction for Writers + Enneagram for Creativity Gathering on Sept 27-28):
“For so long in my life, I realized that creativity for me actually was how do I create an image for someone else? How do I get to a place where I'm projecting something?
But when I began to learn the Enneagram and began to learn that my impulse is actually towards this win, towards this image that I've decided is winning, that creativity actually allows for me to decide what the win is for myself.
So, I'm a poet—I'm a writer as well—and so instead of writing towards, and this takes discipline to do, instead of writing towards the affirmations of others, of course people have audiences, et cetera, but instead of writing towards the affirmation applause, I really began to write for my own healing.
And for me, that journey through the Enneagram allowed me to see there's not an issue when your motivation is the win. The issue is when you let others dictate what the win is for you.
And so I feel like through all the numbers, there's some type of connectivity towards our healing that allows for our creativity to be a balm for ourself, even as it is something for someone else.”
Practice.
Set a timer for 10 minutes and take notes or journal in response to the quotes above and/or questions below.
—How has writing and other creative practices helped you have more healing?
—What have you learned from healing from the creative life?
—When do you notice yourself making art for someone else or to create an image you want to project?
—How can you let go of writing (and doing other things) to gain affirmations from other people?
Want More?
—Watch the entire IG Live with Dr. Chelsea Brooke Yarborough and me
—Register for Spiritual Direction for Writers + Enneagram for Creativity Gathering on Sept 27-28.
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Workshops, Gatherings, & Resources
—New Resource: Parenting with Art® Lectio Divina Cards Information about ordering these cards can be found in my Books + Spiritual Direction + Retreats & Gatherings email newsletter that went out last night. To stay in the loop on all of my work, writing, book recs, and more, subscribe to that weekly newsletter at charlottedonlon.com/subscribe.
—The September Co-Writing calendar is live.
—Spiritual Direction for Writers® + Enneagram for Creativity Gathering will take place on Friday, September 27th and Saturday, September 28th. You can register here. All registered participants will have access to recordings.
—The Great Belonging Project is live here and The Great Belonging Project October Refresh will take place Oct 1-Oct 31.
Today’s Daily Nourishment was provided by Charlotte Donlon.
*Please help us protect our intellectual property, our creative process, and the integrity of our work. Spiritual Direction for Writers® Daily Nourishment is covered under the Spiritual Direction for Writers® trademark. You are welcome to share this link with others, but any other use (written or spoken) is prohibited without written permission from Charlotte Donlon.