I’ve been worried about my art for August because I usually work on these a month in advance and July has me traveling to Seattle, Sydney, and Boston, so I knew I wasn’t going to be in town enough to be sure I could pull off twenty pieces.
But then I got Ali’s July prompt for One Little Word and that very same night, I created all twenty pieces of art I wanted for August. All in one breath. Her prompt was about creating a summer manifesto. Something you want to tell yourself again and again in July.
As I listened to her presentation, the first thing I heard in my head was “Be here now.” As I mentioned, I have a lot of upcoming travel. Any one of these destinations would be enough to have me stressed out, but I will be doing all three in a matter of 2.5 weeks. I am arriving back from Sydney the same day I am scheduled to fly to Boston for a two week trip. I am flying to Sydney to meet a team I don’t know at all. I am nervous about all this. Not to mention I am really nervous and sad about leaving the kids.
It’s very easy for me to worry all day about things that are coming up. It’s very easy for me to sit there in regret of where I am not or what I didn’t do (or did do.) What’s considerably harder for me is to be here, now. To enjoy this very moment. To shut off all the noise in my head around worry or regret and to just step into the moment I am already in.
While it’s stressful, it’s also magical that I get to go to Seattle and especially Sydney. I have never been to Sydney and I get to spend almost a week there and will have two other work friends in town. I will get to be in Boston and Martha’s Vineyard with my family. I will get to see my wonderful nephew Aksel. All of these things will happen in the month of July. Not to mention I am here for the first 13 days and will have almost every weekend in July at home with the boys. I also get to do a crazy race. I get to have a 4 day weekend. July will be a full and crazy month. And if I blink it will all be over.
What I don’t want to do is ruin any of these moment. I want to fully soak in all of them. I want to fully experience every one of these things. Be with my family when I am in town. Do the crazy race with my friends. Enjoy Seattle (and work hard). Explore Sydney (and work hard there too but especially establish some connections.) Hug my kids as we walk all over the magical Vineyard. And run around in the wonderful yard of my inlaws. Visit the Cambridge office. I want to do it all. I want to live it all. I want to live all of it without any regret or sorrow. I want to be here, now.
In this very moment. So I can make the most of it. So I can really experience it.
So I can live it.
Watercolor Food is a Monthly Project for June 2016. You can read more about my projects for 2016 here.
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