Email #5: Be one who creates

People submitted numerous examples on how they are using Finding Steady Ground.

Here’s a sample:

“Last weekend was an intentional retreat time for me during which I ‘fasted’ from all media input — no films, radio, TV, magazines. Initially, I noticed a marked increase in my anxiety level. When I leaned into that anxiety I found an entrenched hyper-vigilance, a need to be fed information in order to maintain what I realized was an illusory sense of control. When I was able to let that need go, my anxiety decreased markedly and energy was freed up for creative projects.”
– Deborah, Questa NM

Read more testimonials on how implementing these behaviors helps.
Have your own story? Share with us how these behaviors have been helpful to you.

Dear Friend,

We’re more than 1/2 way through exploring the 7 Finding Steady Ground behaviors. What’s been working for you? Which you have managed to integrate into your life? Let us know.

#5: I will be aware of myself as one who creates.

Our culture is relentless in pushing us into the role of consumer. Advertising makes wants that we never knew we had; our economy appears to be dependent on us wanting to buy more and more stuff. And that’s not all. We consume news; we consume entertainment; we purchase more and more services that used to exist outside the marketplace (think birthday parties, grocery shopping).

This consumer role encourages passivity. We are being acted upon by external forces that claim to know us better than we know ourselves. We don’t have to think about what we need or want; the advertisements will guide us. We don’t have to exert to entertain ourselves; we are surrounded by options to purchase. We don’t have to puzzle over our opinions on a knotty political issue; once we have expressed a slight preference, the experts on that side are ready to tell us exactly what to think.

Yet passivity is not good for our souls. And a habit of passivity is not good for a vibrant democracy. One way to keep ourselves awake is to tend that part of us that creates.

The possibilities are endless about how you can create. Make food, write a poem, organize a party, take a sketch book on a walk, mend a shirt or a chair, set up a jam session, plant lettuce, knit a hat, paint the bathroom, pick up a game of ball, do a stand-up routine, mess around with wood, clay, beads, fabric, paper.

Whatever we do, let it remind you that we are actors in our own lives. As we see ourselves as actors in our own lives, it’s easier to remember that we can be actors in the larger scene.

But mostly, do it because it’s fun, and it’s human, and it’s the way we were meant to be.

Send us your stories of being a person who creates. We look forward to sharing them. Let us know how it goes!

You’re not in this alone. Keep sharing! Keep loving!

Yours,

– Daniel Hunter and Pamela Haines
with Shreya Shah modeling her creating through the hand-drawn art!

ps:
En Español! Finding Steady Ground in Spanish (Buscando terreno firme): es.findingsteadyground.com. Por favor comparta con otras personas!

Missed the previous e-mails on the previous behaviors? You can find them in the resources section of our website!

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