Creative Journaling (3) – Reading a Line

In a broad sense, what is drawing?  It is making a line or a mark, though it can be more than that.  A signature, really, a line, which each of us has learned to “draw” – and which, over the years has become unique and identifiable as particularly our own.  It has the characteristics of the hand which makes it.  It can even take on the feelings of the person at the time it was written.  Perhaps they were in hurry or a bit sleepy, or were sitting in car on a bumpy surface, or the paper was lumpy.  But we know that is our signature.  In fact, it is just a mark, a line, but it is a “telling mark.” (Ref: “Drawing on the Artist Within,” by Betty Edwards, Ch. 6, pp. 56+). 

Recently in the journaling class, we composed a fictional first and last name (with closed eyes, using a pin and the telephone book ).  Then we asked everyone present to write the name, as though it was their own, on a piece of paper.  We then laid all the “signatures” out on the table and had an interesting time looking at all these signature-lines, making up a “story” about person it represented.  What kind of “person” was this?  What were they feeling?  What can we tell about them?  In effect, we were learning to see a line and to “read” it. You can try it also.

Activity:  And then for homework, we all shared another line activity.  (Ref. ibid., Ch. 7, adapted from p. 65-67, “Drawing Out Insight”)  Fold a sheet of paper in half (lengthwise), then fold it in half again, and then fold it in half again.  Then open it up. You should have 8 little spaces.  Number each section at the bottom 1-8, and label each panel with a descriptor:  1. Anger.  2. Joy.  3. Tranquility.  4. Depression.  5. Power.  6. Femininity.  7. Illness.  8. _________.  The #8 is the choice of the individual (I chose “Hunger), or any human trait.  Using a pencil (not a pen), in each section, one at a time, make a drawing that to you represents what the word at the bottom stands for.  One exception: “You must not draw any pictures whatsoever or use any symbols at all.  No raindrops, no shooting stars, no hearts and flowers, no question marks, no lightening bolts, no rainbows, no clenched fists.  Use only the language of line: fast lines, slow lines, light, dark, smooth, rough, broken, or flowing.”  Let “expression” be in the line(s) alone. 

The next week, we again laid them all out on the table.  There was lively discussion, as you may guess, as everyone tried to “read the line.”  And the discussion turned to the difficulty of finding out how to make an expressive line without using language or cartoon-like patterns.  It was an investigation of a totally new concept:  how to make feelings visible.  In fact, several people submitted more that one page of panels, as they struggled to achieve what they considered to be the proper expressiveness (to themselves).  We’ve re-done the assignment three times, using different human traits, always gaining more insight into drawing lines expressively. And we agree it works best if we can try to feel or imagine the condition inside ourselves, and then proceed to make the line-marks.  Try it.  See what you think.

“Thus, every line is a statement, a form of communication between the individual who made the line and the individual who views it.  A drawing is a far more complex mode of expression, revealing of a wide realm beyond conscious awareness.  We can “read” a line.  Can we  “read” a drawing?  If so, perhaps we can take a step in the direction of gaining access to that part of the mind which knows…more than it knows it knows – the same part of the brain that asks the beautiful question, ponders the unsolved problem, takes the initial step in the creative process: First Insight.” [Ibid., p. 65]

.Some Words of Encouragement:

·        “The first steps of a creative act are like groping in the dark: random and chaotic, feverish an fearful, a lot of busy-ness with no apparent or definable end in sight… the idea, however minuscule, is what turns the verb into a noun – paint into a painting, sculpt into sculpture, write into writing, steps into a dance.  I call it scratching.”  [Ref: The Creative Habit: Learn it and Use It For Life, Twyla Tharp, p. 94-5.]

·        Do a verb or an adjective in the activity.  Try something new.

·        “Those who wonder are not necessarily lost.”  [Kobi Yamada]

·        “Oh, for a life of sensations rather than of thoughts!” [John Keats]

·        “Look closely.  The beautiful may be small.” [Emmanuel Kant]

Creative Journaling (2) See & Not-See

To see and not to see (to borrow from Hamlet), that is the issue for today, so much contained in so small an expression. 

To See:  involves perception by the physical eye, to look, to view, as well as multiple levels of knowing, understanding, insight, experiencing, to discovery, to visualize or imagine mental pictures, to become aware, to recognize, to examine or watch, to care for someone or something, to meet or visit, to grasp a new concept, to inquire, to focus attention, just to mention a few common meanings. 

And then there is Not-To-See:  implies blindness, dimness, something hidden or ignored, visionless, distorted, askew, blinkered, ghostly, blurred perhaps, indistinct, invisible, concealed, mysterious, covert, undefined, veiled. 

So you may well ask why this can be of interest.  We take a walk, and we see things or think about new ideas and these can spark insights and enjoyment.  So what is the advantage of taking a walk and not seeing the beauty of the world around us?  What is the asset in that?

Consider the case of the dominant eye.  In a normal situation, we can assume that we have two eyes capable of normal vision, and that they are arranged somewhat apart on the face.  And when an object is placed in front of these eyes, each eye will send a separate image to the brain, and the brain will resolve the two images into one (a stereo-optical, dimensional image).  You can see this for yourself if you conduct a simple experiment:  Make a circle with your thumb and first finger. With both eyes open look at an object on the wall or in the distance, and centre it inside the circle of your fingers. Next, close one eye, and then the other.  Notice that with one of your eyes, the object jumps outside the circle. If the object seemed to move when you closed your left eye, then you have left eye dominance. If the object moved more when your right eye was closed, then your right eye is the dominant one.

How is this useful or interesting?  Certainly, the part of the brain controlling the image perception is using much of the information from the dominant eye, and that is extremely useful in a practical way.  However, even more interesting might be the non-dominant image, of the space revealed when the eye “jumped” to the new position.  Often new insights can be obtained by considering the surrounding areas, the “context,” so to speak, of the main subject.  It can highlight relationships which were not before apparent.  It can reveal new shapes and patterns between two apparently different or unrelated things.  We need to be careful that in focusing too tightly, we don’t also lose the opportunity for creative insight.  Often, the most interesting insights emerge in that cross-over area where two different things rub together.  That is where the spark occurs, where the flash and excitement can be found.  Where the seeing and not-seeing come together.  Where creative insights live.

Some Words of Encouragement:

·        Stop every little while and notice what’s all around. [CR]

·        Be sensitive to the rhythms of the unseen as well as the seen, and wonder abut their meanings. [CR]

·        Fire and Ice by Robert Frost

Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I’ve tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.

Creative Journaling (1) The Creative Process

(Note to my readers:  I want to apologize for not being able to get to these postings up in a more timely fashion, but I hope that you will find the wait to be worth it.)

To begin at the beginning, I’ve been a teacher for many, many years, and there has been a constant little niggling problem in the back of my mind.  That is, how to stimulate the creative powers in an individual, in students, and myself included?  And supposing that if I could do that, how can I find a way to teach it to others?  Clearly, it has something to do with our brains.  Are some just more insightful, more talented than others?  I don’t think so.  I think that everyone has potential, has undeveloped awareness of talents and abilities.  So how can these creative resources be tapped and released?

Recently I ran into a book, printed in 1987, which starts out by raising these same questions.  How could I have missed it so long?  I must have been blind, or it just wasn’t the moment of readiness.  But now I want to share the reference for this treasure which I’ve been using in my classes.  I will be referring to it from time to time in the up-coming creative journaling series of posts: “Drawing on the Artist Within,” by Betty Edwards, (ISBN 0-671-63514-X pbk).  If at all possible, please try to locate a copy. I’ll be citing from it from time to time.

I readily admit that my background is in the arts and literature.  I am not a scientist, and as such I know that it is a gross over-simplification just to blithely assume that the brain has two parts, left and right, and that each side is in charge of different human thinking processes.  In fact, we are woefully ignorant about the brain and how it works, and brain research is in its infancy.  But we have to start this dialogue somewhere, in order to think about it at all, so here goes. 

A diagram summarizes some of the Right and Left Brain modes (p. 12).

Left –Mode                  Right-Mode

Verbal                          Nonverbal

Syntactical                    Perceptual

Linear                           Global

Sequential                     Simultaneous

Analytic                        Synthetic

Logical                         Intuitive

Symbolic                      Concrete

Temporal                      Non-temporal

Digital                           Spatial

In Chapter 1 (pp. 2-9) of the text, there is an excellent summary of the historical context concerning research into the creative process, divided into five stages, as follows:

R    First Insight:      A sudden awareness (What? What if?)

L    Saturation:        Obtaining information (Need data…)

R    Incubation:        Thinking about it (How could it be?)

R    “Aha!”:             Sudden insight  (Eureka! That’s it!)

L    Verification:      Checking  (Does it really work?)

So if there are two sides to the brain, which side is doing the heavy lifting?  And the answer is (taa-daa) both are, but in different stages of the process (above, R= Right Brain Mode, L= Left Brain Mode). 

So now we have a problem.  Much of our educational system is geared toward training the left brain: language, reading, counting, formulas, data, facts, dates, etc.  However the right brain likes music, colors, dancing, drawing, art, patterns, etc.  And though I hate to admit it, if we spend all our time just writing in our journals, the result is that they are going to become products of the left brain.  That, unhappily, leaves out a great deal of creative input. So how do we begin to have more creative input into our simple habit of journaling? 

Well, it turns out that one good way is to wake up and stimulate the right brain for more of its input, and drawing is one way to do that.  It doesn’t matter if you think you can’t draw.  Just try these activities to get started.  Don’t be a critic.  Be brave.  Just jump in and do it.  And don’t throw them out.  Either draw them in your journal, or put them on paper and save them in a folder for later use.

Activities (p. 15):

~   Activity #1:  Draw your hand.

~   Activity #2:  Draw a person (live, magazine, yourself?)

~   Activity #3:  Draw an object

Some Words of Encouragement to Get Started:

v     Remember, this is not art.  It is to stimulate R-mode.

v     It’s good to try something new.

v     It’s common to lose awareness of time passing when working in the R-mode.  Just let it happen.

Creativity and a Short Update

This is a general status update so you will know why there has been a long pause in recent postings. Though I try to post on Cornerhouse twice a week, sometimes my schedule makes that difficult.  I want my readers, who I treasure for your faithfulness and loyalty, to know that our Creative Journaling class here has been invigorated and excited by an extended class dialogue about the process of creativity and how the creative process occurs.  Members have been experimenting with some new and exciting approaches to stimulate more creative journaling.  I will be sharing our progress in a series of postings here at Cornerhouse, just as soon as I can.

In the meantime, thank your for your patient and diligent readership.
Cornerhouse

Journaling with “Homeomorphic” Ideas

The following comes from a posting by artist Robert Genn, April 19, 2005, and his perceptions about the creative process in art.  His ideas apply to an equally creative process in writing, including journaling.  It’s a way to release fresh creative thoughts and approaches.  After all, composition in the visual arts is equally important in the language arts.  So when Robert Genn talks about painting, the journalist can think writing, and start to follow an interesting new side paths in our daily entries. 

“Not everyone knows what I'm talking about when I drag the word "homeomorphic" out in mixed company.  Specifically to do with equality of shapes in differing chemicals, it's not in the art books [nor the writer’s books].  But it's a valuable creative concept.  Without always knowing its name, homeomorphism is generally pointed out as a type of compositional problem.

Typically it's a lineup of equidistant trees, or a mountain that rises up conveniently in order to avoid colliding with a foreground element [or a grocery list of what you did today].  It's a natural tendency of the human mind to automatically organize things neatly and in a regular manner. You can probably see an example of architectural homeomorphism from where you sit--window panes are generally divided from one another by equidistant mullions….  

Many artists [or writers] instinctively fight it.  Too much homeomorphism, unimaginatively used, gives a "ruler-regularity" that tends to make work boring.  Nature's not like that.  Nature tends to be uneven,  random, even chaotic.  This means big against small, recession against protrusion, foreground against background, dark against light, warm against cool. 

There's a parallel in music [or poetry].  Music often depends on a regular and reliable rhythmic beat.  But in a lot of jazz, reggae and stride piano [free verse] for example, the beat is given on the off-note.  Rather than conformation, there's counterpoint.  While providing a safe haven, homeomorphism tends to snuff natural dynamism and neutralize creative surprise.

But homeomorphism is also a valuable design device.  It can add interest, mystery, magic and strength.  Lineups, repetition, transfers, rhythm and spottification [bits & pieces?] are some of the tools of abstraction.  Free from nature's reality, the creative eye can decide to "hold" a shape with another, or "confuse" by allowing a shape or a line to be drawn to another.

Homeomorphism is one way to beguile the eye.  [Mystery stories do this very deliberately.]  The next time you're dragging a brush [pen] and wondering where your stroke [idea] might end, remember that you have choices.  Your stroke can go to something, veer away from something, fall short, overtake, or bump nicely into the middle of something.  It's an esoteric little business, but it's good to be aware that it exists.”

And thank you, Robert Genn, for bringing this useful creative technique out in the open.

Some Words of Encouragement:

v     Stop every little while and notice what’s all around. [CR]

v     Be sensitive to the sounds and rhythms of words, as well as their meanings. [CR]

v     “Chance is a fine thing.”  [CR]

v     “There’s gold in them thar hills!” [CR]

Birthdays Past & Present

In the course of a year, there are some days in our lives which deserve special attention.  They merit the use of ink of a different color.  They are annual milestones.  Birthdays are such days.  Most of us remember a small handful of birthdays, but what if we could go back and revisit all of them over the years.  Like links in a chain, the diamonds and rubies and sapphires of our birthdays sparkle fresh when we revisit them in our journals.  That is what I’m doing.  Today, July 15, is my birthday, and I’m taking a birthday journey through my journals, and you are invited to come along, too.

·        2002 – “I had a dream … I was on a trip in the dark to some remote place: cold, rough log road, raining, rude, crude, muddy.  I arrive, thinking it’s going to have a great outcome (gold, diamonds, treasure, whatever), but things just get worse, and the sun never shines.  Finally, after a time, I decide to “throw in the towel” and get out.  Then the real trouble starts.  The trip back is one rip-off after the next, little food, nothing left.  I find I can’t go forward; I can’t go back; I should never have come; I should never have left   Then my dream speaks to me, ‘Sometimes we don’t know when we’re already ahead.’  Smart dream!  Later I celebrated with butter-pecan ice cream for dessert.  It’s my birthday!”

·        2003 – “There were cherries for breakfast this morning and birthday cards from my sister and brother.  A friend sends a dish of paneer and spinach for lunch, and a small scarf with a fringe.  Another friend stops by with zucchini and tomatoes from her garden for dinner.  How lovely it is to have family and friends!  I’m reading “The Feast of Roses” by Indu Sundassan, who also wrote “The Twentieth Wife.””

·        2004 – “I woke and put safflower seeds in the feeder for the cardinals.  The family arrives for a visit and we have dinner together followed by cold ice cream in the hot summer air.  The children doze off to sleep while the adults chat, their voices quiet in the night. On the porch, watching the stars and the fireflies.”

·        2005 – “I was given a gift of a “memory mattress” for my back, tied with red ribbons.  A friend comes by with a miniature rose plant for the garden.  The bougainvillea is in bloom.  And there are phone calls during the evening from the family about late arrivals for their visit this year.  It’s the last full weekend before the rush back to school begins.”

·        2006 – “My sister called me.  She had just returned from the hospital there they tried to get her ready for a procedure, except her blood vessels collapsed and they could not get a blood sample.  She’s now home and resting on oxygen and feeling very low. . Her body is shutting down.  Is she going to beat this?  (Two days later, I call, and much to my surprise, she was in really good spirits and said, “Happy Birthday!” in a clear voice.  Good things can happen.)”

·        2007 – (I’ve retired.  We’re selling our house, packing, and moving.)  “General cleanup.  Vacuum carpets.  Clean grout, plumbing, and re-hang light fixtures in the bathroom.  Loading the truck tomorrow.  Family calls to say, “Happy Birthday!”  I’m so tired; I just crawl onto an air mattress for the night.”

·        2008 – (In new house)  “Letter from the State Historical Society to say that our home is to be listed on the state and national public register list of historical properties!  What a wonderful birthday present!  We are really very pleased.  About mid-afternoon I receive a phone call from the city confirming this status.”

·        2009 – “My birthday today.  Hot! Hot! Hot! 100 degrees (F) due today.  Went to the Farmer’s market early while it is cooler.  Got a lot of fruits and vegetables  Lovely sweet corn-on-the-cob for dinner.  Then we went over to the local sidewalk sale.  I found a small wooden shelf for $ .50 – it just fits on top of the baking cabinet.  In the evening I practice some songs on the piano.”

·        2010 – “(104 degrees today) Up early to get tasks done while it is cool.  Water the garden.  Make a batch of spaghetti sauce.  Make a batch of rice for the freezer.  A bunch of birthday phone calls in the evening from family and friends, which makes a nice end to the day.”

·        2011 – “For the first time since retiring I’m sometimes feel like a ‘senior.’  Actually, I never thought I would live so long.  My husband is also showing signs of aging: arthritis, indigestion, back pain, irregular sleeping.  Phone calls come in the evening, but it’s just us, and it’s rather quiet this year.” 

·        2012 – “Lots of time making hospital visits.  My husband is due home tomorrow.  He’s not at all well, but he prefers to be home.  I’ll be glad to have more home time, too.  (Note:: he died the next month, in the kindest way possible, quickly, with no lingering pain.)

·        2013 – “My computer is down.  Arrange for service with a local expert, who does a very good job.  Unit should be back tomorrow.  Birthday calls from family, friends, and cards and calls from lots of people who want me to know they care.  I got through the day, and am grateful for the people around me.

·        2014 – “It’s 12 years of birthday journal entries above, and so much has changed.  I now teach classes in journaling and bookbinding.  I design sets and costumes for the local theater group, exhibit my design work locally, and am active with my garden and my blog, with family and friends.  The biggest difference is that before, when I was working, I had to spend a lot of time and energy doing things I hated.   Now I still spend a lot of time and energy, but it’s doing things I love.”

Some Words of Encouragement:

·        “There should be more to life than working … At the end of the day, you know what that is: to love and be loved.  Simply that.”  [Ref: At the End of The Day, B. Neels.]

·        “You only get one life.  You don’t get second chances.” [Ref: September, Rosamunde Pilcher, p. 486]

·        “Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans.” [Ref: Song, John Lennon]

·        “The only differences that are of lasting importance are the little differences that you make in the life of another person.” [Ref: Richard Pimentel, the power behind the Americans with Disabilities Act.]

·        “Yesterday’s history; tomorrow’s a mystery; today is the present; every day is a gift.” [Ref: “Little Pink Slips,” Sally Koslow, p. 27]

Journaling Can Help Convert Words into Deeds

This is about the using the journal to create relationships between knowing and doing, coming to the understanding that the actions we perform, our deeds, are the outward expression of our inner thoughts and desires.  The body does what the mind says.  And we can work some of our thoughts into deeds in the pages of our journals.

In her book The Year of Pleasures, Elizabeth Berg wrote, “I’m not talking about things that happen to you.  I’m talking about things you make happen.  I’m talking about purposefully doing one thing that brings you happiness every single day, in a very conscious way.” [p. 158] 

It takes awareness of oneself, consciously seeking to find a daily outward expression in the way of positive actions, i.e. deeds.  And by recording them in a device such as a journal, to keep one self moving ever closer to aligning inner thoughts to outward volition as deeds of action.  Most particularly, these deeds only need be recorded in the journal, not announced to the world.  (We are not talking about ego-nourishment here.)  It is using the journaling process on a daily or regular basis to learn about oneself.  It creates a personal opportunity for beneficial changes in life.

“What is the process by which a talker becomes a doer…?  They get [focused] by an issue.”  [Ronald Kuby.  Note concerning the context of this quote:  Mr. Kuby, a noted defense lawyer in New York City, is discussing terrorism, and his insight brings light to the moment in the thinking process when abstract words become the motivational decision toward concrete actions, deeds.  CR]

Some qualities which may help trigger actions, changes, and deeds could be, but are not restricted to: Curiosity, Bravery, Hope, Ambition, Love, Habit, Imagination, Fear, Memories, Poverty, Self-Examination, Hardship, Dreams, Caring, Nourishing, Helping, Opportunity, Death.

And in the process of moving from Thinking to Saying to Doing, here are some ideas:

·        Aim to bring balance and consistency between words and deeds

·        Aim for improved communication in relationships

·        Honor one’s promises

·        Practice positive ethical standards

·        Exhibit moral behavior

·        Be prudent in judgment

·        Practice kindness and compassion

·        Refrain from idle gossip

·        Treat people fairly

Some Words of Encouragement:

~  “Let deeds, not words, be your adorning.”  [The Hidden Words, Bana’u’llah]

~  “What I hear I forget; What I see, I remember; What I do I know.”  [Chinese Proverb]

~  “Mitzvah; an act of human kindness.”

~  “Watch what we do, not what we say.” [John Mitchell]

~  “Watch your thoughts for they become words; watch your words for they become actions.”  [Proverb]

~   “You  don’t let horses run away with you.  You rein they in.  The same with the wild horses of your mind.”  [The Treasure of Montsigue, Sophy Burnham]