“As artists, we are often in the ugly-duckling position. We have been born into families that regard us as “odd–and we come to regard ourselves that way. (Sometimes our families are supportive, but our culture, as a whole, is not.) Our desire to make things and to make something of ourselves in the arts is often reflected back to us as “Who do you think you are?” I call this “growing up in the fun house,” where our soul’s aspirations are mirrored back to us in a distorted and distorting fashion that makes them appear egotistical and unrealistic: “Don’t get too big for your britches,” “Who do you think you are?” We often don’t really know the answer to that. We know something along the lines of “I think I might be…” When we surround ourselves by people who either cannot see us or cannot acknowledge what they see, our image blurs. We begin to feel both a certain self-doubt and a certain stubborn inner knowing that we may then dismiss as crazy. Part of us knows we’re more than we see; part of us fears we’re less than we hope. This inner friction is painful.”
“As artists, when a shoe doesn’t fit us, we may try to walk in it anyway. If we are told that it fits, we may start to use our excellent creative imaginations to imagine that it fits. We may further tell ourselves that our own discomfort at the pinching and pain of a wrong shoe–and a wrong personal and creative identity–is just our “ego.” And, we might add, just our “grandiosity.” For many of us, declaring ourselves an artist is a “coming-out” process. “I think I am, I think I might be, I really identify with… oh, dear God, I think I am.” Like any coming-out process, this is turbulent. …” (from Julia Cameron’s Walking in This World)
Consider that “artist” encompasses anyone with a creative spirit and a calling to take a different path, one that might not be traditional or considered a “feasible” or “realistic” in your family, community, world. Writers, healers, composers, dancers, designers, and some we don’t have words for yet. A lot of us.
“All of us need and require accurate Believing Mirrors. Believing Mirrors reflect us as large and competent creatively. They mirror possibility, not improbability. They ignore “the odds” against us. These mirrors are held by people large enough and expansive enough spiritually not to be threatened by the size and grandeur of another artist shaking out his sizable wings. …” (from Julia Cameron’s Walking in This World)
We are on a journey of the soul, a sacred path. We are walking in this world, and also hearing a deeper voice within. There is often no map, only an internal knowing of something bigger. We do and follow what we know we must, just as an eagle destined to fly, a child destined to be born. We are coming out, we are birthing ourselves. Until we find other eagles, others like ourselves, we will feel disconnected, different, maybe even called “ugly.”
For more and an invitation to gather and grow, to find Believing Mirrors and support, read on.
Waking in This World as an artist or writer
The Artist’s Way at Work
O Circle on Living Your Best Life
All cooperative components are being assembled. (Abraham-Hicks)