Open Your Eyes

Creativity.

     The spark that ignites an idea, the flutter of inspiration in your mind late at night, and that random thought that strikes at the most random times in the most random places. These are all tiny tastes of creativity.

     Think of it as wisps of pure glowing light swirling and winding around the earth. So many endless trails, forming and disappearing and forming again. Radiating off things and sinking into others. These paths of light are everywhere, just beyond what our eyes have been taught to see. But there lies our problem, our eyes have been taught to see only what is in front of us, only what exists in reality.

     We need to stretch our minds, pushing aside what we see in or to be able to see what we could not see. We have to train our brains to see those wisps of creativity, to see past what is around us.

     Here are some ways to stretch our minds towards being able to grasp those shiny trails of light.

1. Carry A Notebook Everywhere

     Make it personal, if the outside of the journal is boring the writing on the inside will be as well.

     Scribble random ideas, thoughts, or scraps of conversation. Doodle in the margins, press flowers between the pages, record dreams, and jot down to do's. Fill the pages with lines of your everyday life write down seemingly random thoughts. What might seem unimportant now could be fascinating in the future.

2. Try Free Writing

     In the pages of the above notebook place your pen down at the top of the page and set a timer. Ten, fifteen, thirty minutes, whatever you choose. Once the timer stops: write.

     It will probably feel weird at first, but the longer you free write the easier it will get to find things to write about. Try to avoid writing things like "I don't know why I'm doing this" or "This is super weird". Let your mind explore the space around you with your metal senses. Describe in mushy detail what you feel, smell, hear, see, and taste. Explore every small prickle of an idea and let yourself write without a thought. Try doing this a couple of days in a row to get into the rhythm of free writing; you have no idea the things you will discover.

     Let yourself explore your mind without boundaries.

3. Get Away From Technology And Go Outside

     How long has it been since you went outside for a long walk while you phone sits inside?

     One of the most refreshing things to do is venture outside, no matter the weather and be aware of the world around you. To see the creativity in the world we must first see the world. Take a stroll through a park, have a snowball fight with the neighbor-hood kids, explore the forest around your home. Be curious, discover new things, and rediscover the things you've forgotten. Allow yourself to have fun and play, get bruises and get dirty. Or just sit on a bench and observe the beautiful world around you, with all of its perfections and imperfections. View the world with the eyes of a child and the heart of someone who wants more from their life.

4. Start Something New

     A new project, a new picture, a new hobby.

     Something new means new opportunities and new adventures. This doesn't mean ditching the old things, but trying something completely different from what you normally do. Are you a math geek? Try bird watching. Are you a dancer? Try horseback riding. Are you part of a band? Try scrap-booking. Are you a photographer? Try playing a musical instrument.

    Something new can open your mind to so many different things we've overlooked before. Try painting or blowing glass, playing the piano or learning computer code, writing a blog or doing landscape photography, cooking or maybe carving. There are so many things in the world we've never tried; you never know what you might find.

5. Get Together With Other Creative People

     There is nothing quite like being in a room full of creative people. The very air is alive with energy and possibilities when you are.

     Connect with people from around your town who are both creative and passionate about what they do. Set up a time when you all can get together, be it at one of your houses, a park, or a coffee shop. Ask questions, have fun and allow the conversations to flow any way it wants to go. Being around creative people who can see the creativity around them can open our own eyes to that world as well.

6. Search For It

     Sometimes the best way to see the creativity is if we're looking for it.

     Creativity should not be relied on to strike at the perfect times, which keeps us from creating inspired works regularly. We need to force ourselves to focus on the stories and ideas surrounding us. We need to take time in our busy lives to let our imaginations play and frolic in creativity. Open your eyes to the lives around you; people are filled with stories that are overflowing with creativity. We can get so caught up in our lives that our lives slowly slip away without us realizing it. We become so blind to the creativity around us, forgetting that there is so much more beyond the surface.

     I know I am guilty of this. I realized half-way through writing this that it is no use telling other people to open their eyes when I am blind as well. I want all of us for the new few days to simply allow our minds to be free, our eyes to be opened, and our hearts to be ready. If we can do that we will realize we have been missing our on a whole different world.

     So take my hand and together we will play in the forest, chasing the trails of creativity and allowing our lives to change.