This week I'm on retreat at home. Retreating away from my normal routine, away from emails and meetings, away from expectations.
I thought I would probably do a lot of painting this week because I love painting; exploring colour and form. It is prayerful and it has the amazing ability to relax me and distract me from pain.
I purely "create" what feels right at any point and don't the ever force any particular style or format, so I never know what might emerge.
If I try and "make" myself write or create something then I get fatigued quickly and my pain increases.
Creativity to me is organic and prayerful and relaxing and completely therapeutic.
At the start of the week I created five paintings related to water. The first emerged when hearing from a friend about letting everything go. Four more followed and felt like a journey Jesus would have taken to his baptism. It was only afterwards that I realised that this is the week we celebrate Jesus's baptism. You can see these paintings here.
Then, as I entered the week of retreat at home, a completely new style of painting appeared. I was thinking of places I'd love to retreat if accessibility and energy and money were no object. In response I've created these extremely colourful retreat houses against abstract backgrounds. Two in the forest. Two by the sea. Four on a beach.
I'm not sure why this new style is pouring out of me this week, or if it will continue to flow, but I'm loving it and people seem to appreciate what I'm creating. Do you have a favourite?
I go to the beach A perfect place to retreat Under great wide skies Connected gently Protected eternally Rested fully Nature calling Place your feet on holy ground Connect again Ever shifting sands Time stands still amongst movement Letting it all go
And then
There's
This
..
What is this? A retreat in space? Space tourism at its best? I'm not sure. Perhaps it's more about giving myself space to retreat more often!