Archive for the ‘Coaxing Creativity Tues Tip’ Category

Enjoy ice cream today – Coaxing Creativity Tuesday Tip June 22, 2010

Eat ice cream today – Last week’s trip to the county fair got me thinking about the treats and since June is Dairy Month (since 1939) I’ll encourage you to indulge in a frozen goodie today. What’s your favorite? Chocolate? Vanilla? Rocky Road? Maybe it’s something you only let yourself have on special occasions. Yesterday was the Summer Solstice and the official beginning of summer. That’s pretty special. Or, create your own special occasion…Care to join me in celebrating?

Do you remember the fun you had going to the County Fair? The excitement of wondering if there would be a new ride to thrill you on the Midway, anticipation of  discovering new treats to add to your favorites (mine were Tom Thumb doughnuts milkshakes at the Dairy Building), and the pride in participating in the 4H competitions. Attending a full-blown fair to see the cows, ducks, chickens, goats and pigs; climb aboard the magic carpets that spun, gyrated and rotated, and indulge at the concession stands offering various delectable delights on-a-stick is a way to relive your childhood. Or, perhaps you liked to listen to the “live” infomercials under the grandstand where the Veg-O-Matic and the Amazing Ricing/Dicing/Spliccing machine was being demonstrated (also a good source for free snacks). And if you didn’t get to do those things, keep your eyes and ears open because every summer weekend the newspaper or radio will advise you where to go to get in on the fun. Tonight, I’ll be speaking on Creativity 101 on the Literary Arts Stage at the San Mateo County Fair – so come on down to the Fiesta Bldg at if you’re in the area at 8 pm. We could share some cotton candy afterwards.

Have you ever received a note of encouragement in the mail at the exact moment you needed to hear good news? What better way to honor Effective Communications Month than to communicate with someone we are extremely close to, yet seldom acknowledge her strengths, talents, and passions. Who am I talking about? You, of course. Today take out a pen and some pretty paper, a note card, a post card,  (an index card in an envelope will do) and write a sentence or two in praise of YOU! Not sure what you want to say? OK, write down a favorite quote, or a line of poetry. Something that will inspire you, give you pause, or evoke a sigh of delight. I can’t wait to see what my mailbox will bring…

A massage is a wonderful way to observe May as National Women’s Health Care Month and access the wealth of creativity that lies below your conscious awareness. In our stressed culture, where stress-related disorders make up between 80-and-90 percent of the ailments that bring people to family-practice physicians, massage can help you both physically and mentally. Of course, stress is a part of the daily routine whether you are trying to hurry a dawdling toddler along in the morning rush, receiving a positive performance review, or dodging another speeding car while changing lanes on the freeway, our body reacts with a “fight or flight” mode. As a result, all our attention is focused on the incident at hand, and your body often needs help refocusing. Various hormones that get amped up during the “fight or flight” response works to shut down the communication between different parts of our brains. When stressed, your brain shuts down and tunnel thinking occurs. To be creative, you need to be relaxed. Fortunately, once you turn off the stress hormones, your body recovers quickly.

The healing touch of massage allows us to tap into our creativity by helping us temporarily turn off our conscious brains allowing information just below our awareness to come into focus. While we are in a relaxed state, we are able to let our thoughts drift in random patterns and suddenly answers to nagging questions will appear. It’s almost as if the answers were waiting for you to open a drawer, or find a hidden key. You never know what’s trying to get through until you nurture yourself with a massage and watch what appears.

Once upon a time – every fairy tale seems to begin with, those words, but we’re not talking about fiction here – we’re talking about your story, your health story. May is Personal History Month. Do you know the connection between Grandpa’s heart trouble and why you need to be aware of eating healthy to avoid clogged arteries? Do you know Aunt Gertie’s hump back was really osteoporosis and something as simple as starting a low impact exercise routine now (walking around the block a couple of times) could go a long way to prevent that fate? Knowing our history can help us cope more easily, perhaps even avoid health challenges. Or, maybe we’ll discover creative ways to live with them. It’s wonderful when we share stories about how little Sally gets her red hair from her father’s side of the family. Unfortunately, red hair and stubbornness seem to go together, and knowing how to de-stress by getting lost in a sewing project has helped the young lady tremendously. Tapping into our creativity in a variety of ways can do a great deal to write a wonderful story for ourselves and live happily ever after.

As little girls, knowing our numbers meant counting from one through ten, or all the way up to 100. Today, the vital numbers we should be aware of correspond to May’s distinction as Women’s Health Care Month. I recently received a letter from Peggy Fleming, (yes, the Olympian and Preventive Health Advocate). No, I’m not in the habit of corresponding with celebrities. My entire Coastside community received the form letter inviting us to take part in several diagnostic screening procedures. The tests measured our risk for stroke, Osteoporosis, cholesterol (total & HDL), glucose (blood sugar), blood pressure, body mass index (ratio of height to weight), and body composition (percentage of body fat). Knowing our numbers helps us understand the health risks, and what we can do to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Tapping into our creativity by doing hands-on activities is a proven strategy to cope with daily stress. Pro-active lifestyle choices cause a healing physiology within our body when we are engaged in creative activity from gardening to cooking, reading to painting, writing in a journal or making a collage, reorganizing a closet or sorting a junk drawer, and more.

 As children, knowing our numbers was a big deal. Knowing our numbers as adults while giving ourselves permission to play is also a big deal. What will you do to do to have your test scores in the healthy number zone?

May is Creative Beginnings Month and today is a perfect day to start something you’ve been thinking about but never seem to get around to doing. Is there an idea or project that’s been waiting in the wings for you to find a few minutes to do some research? Are you ready to tackle a challenge…fly-fishing, watercolors, knitting, journal writing, gardening, cooking, or baking? What’s been lingering in the corners of your mind until you decide it’s time to actually bring it into the light. No, I realize you can’t just pick up a new skill in half an hour. However, you can flip through a magazine, surf the web, or just kick back, plant the seed, and imagine the possibility.

As we enter the season of seedlings and new growth, pause in your travels and literally smell the flowers. Whether your travels find you carpooling the kids to school, shuttling a bus down the highway, riding the train to work, or up in the air, take the time to drink in the aroma of a flower. It will help you take a mini-break to ground yourself in the moment and recharge to take on whatever you encounter next. You may enjoy it so much; you’ll find yourself repeating it!

Soaking in a hot tub is one of my favorite ways to de-stress and recharge at the end of the day. I’m referring to a bath, but if you have access to a spa – indulge. Cleopatra is said to have maintained her famous beauty with milk bath treatments. Modern labs now tell us milk works so well because the lactic acid in milk is an alpha hydroxyl acid, which naturally sloughs off dead skin cells. We can make our own milk bath by adding two to four cups of fresh milk to the bathwater as the tub is filling. Soak for a good 20 minutes. Pouring a glass of something refreshing or brewing a cup of warmth is part of my bath ritual. Those of you who think a shower is more efficient may certainly be right, but we’re talking about self-care, pampering, and stress relief. Linger a while with some reading material, or light a candle and just listen to your favorite music. Bathing your body is also good for your soul.

When was the last time you watched the sky progress from shades of grey to streaks of purple with smudges of pink, peach, and yellow? Ultimately, revealing an orange globe dominating the horizon and allowing shadows to shape shift from suspicious objects into trees, homes, cars, and people. Permit yourself to the slow down and become absorbed in the minutes waiting for the show to begin, and watching it unfold. I’ll never forget attending a week long writing workshop in Minnesota where part of our coursework was to go to the shores of Lake Superior to greet the dawn – and then write about our experiences. Now, I know that it’s not necessary to go to such lengths to watch a sunrise, but they were memorable. You’ll be amazed at the sense of peace, ability to focus and joy you will discover after witnessing a sunrise.