Something From Nothing

I'm uninspired tonight as I try to write. Yet, I just finished watching the first episode of the new season of Project Runway. If those 16 fashion designers can make a runway outfit from a simple bed sheet and the pajamas they went to bed with, surely I can write a few paragraphs for tonight's blog post?!

It's amazing what artists can do! Whether painting, sculpting, singing, dancing, acting, writing, or sewing, I am blown away by the innate talent I see in others. I love seeing how one can make something from nothing. A fashion designer, like Bert on tonight's episode, can make an adorable dress from a pair of boxer shorts and a sheet. An artist can put oil or watercolors on a canvas and make an exquisite painting. A dancer can sway to the right and to the left with graceful arms and make the audience swoon.

I've always wished I could do more with dance and fashion design. I've tried my hand at both sewing and dancing and although I saw potential, I've always known I needed more time than I ever gave to either pursuit. I used to love to paint. I enjoyed painting with acrylics best and one year for Christmas, my husband bought me a canvas and a set of paints to encourage me to begin again. But I never cracked open the gift. I vow to get back to that sometime soon.

I do make time for singing and acting however. I wish I took more time for those pursuits as I always feel so alive when I am on stage, but I have many loves and I find that doing about one show a year satisfies me for the most part. I do sing each week however, cantoring at mass, singing solos occasionally, and I enjoy that. It helps me keep my pipes warmed up and it challenges me musically too.

And of course, I write. Writing is both a creative outlet and a therapeutic prescription I allow myself. I see days, weeks, months, years going by so quickly. Writing helps me slow down long enough to capture a day or an insight. My love of photography and film coincides with this desire to preserve time too. Unlike Bert's dress, not every song I sing or every scene I act, or every blog post I craft, is destined for praise. But as long as I am making something out of nothing, I am content.

Well, there you go. I found inspiration tonight after all.