As the season turns into Fall and healing takes place on global, communal, and personal levels, I welcome moving forward — even if in small steps — with open arms. I finally felt a lift in my spirit nearing the end of Summer 2021, and I am ready to start creating and sharing those creative projects again. I welcome the Renaissance.

Photos by Andrew Hughes

“It was easy to feel discouraged or unmotivated during an era of global uncertainty and stress. Collectively, it was as if we were all ‘waiting on the Renaissance.’”

During the earlier stages of the pandemic, I would overthink my creative outlets to the point of not sharing them — and honestly felt void of the ability to create much of anything anymore. It was easy to feel discouraged or unmotivated during an era of global uncertainty and stress. Collectively, it was as if we were all “waiting on the Renaissance.” As we heal, we must remind others and ourselves that we all deserve to make tangible every shard of creative, emotional, and passionate mess that scatters across our minds. We all need an outlet to create in some way or another — even people who don’t consider themself “creative.” But trust me, you are! Cooking a new recipe, reorganizing your living space, enhancing your vehicle — all require a sense of creativity. We must foster constant creativity to sustain motivation, especially after such a difficult period of time.

Although this past summer was a difficult transitional period to endure, I treasure the opportunity to believe in myself and my talents even if the belief is solely my own. I treasure challenging the misconceptions or dated versions of myself that live in the minds of people who are a stranger to the woman I have grown into. I treasure this time nearing the end of 2021 to focus on nurturing my mental and physical and spiritual health.

I treasure protecting my energy and “moving silently.” People can be so quick to judge instead of pouring into each other and our individual or shared. Furthermore, what was harder for me to realize, is there comes a point where we must re-evaluate how much we pour into others. It is not selfish to reallocate your support back to yourself. It is not arrogant to share the creations you find beauty in as your creations are what you have to offer the world to say, “I am here.” It is not a lonely state of life to protect those creations, even if you tend to value collaborating or sharing ideas. It is sometimes best to keep your projects close to your heart — these parts of yourself — until they are finished, because not everyone will believe in a fragile beginning, and not everyone will support your growth. From meeting new people to developing projects to upcoming life changes, I welcomed in new energy and opportunities over the past few weeks — and I look forward to welcoming in more.

Expect more regular updates and sharing from me here on the blog and everywhere else you can reach me!