I am new to blogging, so forgive me, dear reader, for my previous post on Creativity that failed you. It was more of a diary entry than a post, so let me start again.
I have so often thought of creativity as the throwing of paint onto a canvas so that the results are magically transformed into a beautiful representation of real life or of spectacular whimsy. I thought of creative writing as the product of a person who had the gift of channeling her inner muse.
In short, I always thought of creativity as a left brain/right brain sort of deal.
The left brain is dominant in language as well as in carrying out logic and exact mathematical computations. Your left brain also pulls facts from memory.
The right brain is mainly in charge of spatial abilities, facial recognition, and processing music. As opposed to performing exact mathematical computations, it does well with estimates. The right side also helps in visual imagery and comprehension. Its language role is in interpreting context and a person’s tone.
Brain science indicates that it is not as cut and dry as this, and I agree. But I have always associated myself as being more left-brained.
In fact, in writing this article, I took some online right brain/left brain tests to see where I landed. I did not research the organizations offering these tests, but I took enough of a sampling to get a range of results. And the verdict? I’m pretty equal in both the creative (right brain) and the analytical (left brain). Hmmm. Is this a good thing, or is it an indication of my being a “jack of all trades and master of none”?
But then I think of people I know who are very left brain oriented, I see a creativity in their genius. Years ago, with the advent of Visual Basic, my friend and mentor in all things IT, Roger, wrote a cute little program which he sent to my PC desktop. The wizard character popped up and said, “Hey Babe, Happy Birthday”. I loved it. It was adorable.
But while that appealed to my inner geek, what does it say about the author? While Roger is truly gifted in his [left brain] field, the thoughtfulness in making such an adorable program was also very creative.
Now I look back at my first entry regarding creativity as well as the reasons why I attended the workshop mentioned in the previous post. Bookmaking sounded fun, and I had dabbled in it before, so I knew that I would not make a total fool of myself in that area. But Haiku? Are you kidding? Maybe I would have to take a bathroom break or something during that part of the workshop.
But I realize now that my diary entry/attempt at a post was written due to pure excitement. I did it! I made beautiful books and wrote Haiku! Who knew?
So maybe that is what being creative is about. It is about stepping out of your comfort zone and taking the plunge into something your mind has never been challenged to entertain before.
In closing, here is one of the examples of Haiku written during the workshop. I am thrilled to be one of the authors–along with Sophie and Susan–of this piece:
A stringent wind blows
Buckets of water now pour
In bed, I cower.
The storm passes on
Asleep in bed, I’m dreaming.
Water drips away.
Birds come out of nests
Sun shines through my window pane
I wake up and sing.
Joyous am I now
Sun, birds, song, awakening!
Toss aside bedding.
A Little Off Plum 