January is nearly over...how'd that happen?

Here it is January 26 and I haven't quite gotten into my groove yet? Is this a good thing? Perhaps having a groove too early becomes a ditch or trench you can't get out of? Anyway, I am slowly learning how to do this blog thing and I have had a couple of visits, thanks!

No matter how fast January as has gone, we can't say it was a quiet month. The euphoria that has surrounded the inauguration has not only been uplifting but I really and truly feel there is hope to recover ourselves together. Whether one voted or not for President Obama, we all have to give him and his team the chance to make a difference and we have to help in small and large ways. We can't sit on the sidelines and wait and see. It is going to take all of us to bring this country up from the bottom of the barrel and over the top flowing with prosperity and joy.

I got the latest from Somerset Studios, "Art Journaling". A friend wanted it for Xmas so I got it for her. Of course I had to have a copy, too.
What a fabulous resource for ideas! Yet, I set it down, thinking - well if I do art journaling I won't have time to do 'real art'. You see, in my head to be an artist you have produce an art piece that is sellable. In other words, the only validation for doing art was to create something that can be hung on someone elses wall. My practical and logical mind agrees with this notion - there must be a purpose and outcome to all endeavors. Yet, in the back of my mind there has been a spirited buzzing that was fighting this idea. That buzzing became a louder and louder and is now a battle cry - creativity is not measured by the quantity of what you sell. Creatively is the expression of one's soul and the spirit of engaging with one's environment. To sell what one creates is not a reason to create.

Journaling is not new to me. I have written in journals off and on since I was a teenager...uhm, long ago. As a teacher, have kept special summer journals where I would write and record the fun things I did over summer vacation. I would paste in pictures from trips and other ephemera from travels and social events. However, journals focused on artistic endeavors is new to me. The time it takes was daunting to me. Yet, I want to use my journals to play with techniques and learn from the experiences. So, my goal is to make my journals a source of creative play and a resource for future "art pieces". I worry that I will not be able to carve in the time to do the journaling. I do journal each day anyway, so you'd think that it would not be a problem. Mmmmm...can I do this? If I get this off the ground perhaps I can follow Pam Garrison (www.pamgarrison.typepad.com ) lead and keep several journals for different outcomes? Or maybe what Kari McKnight-Holbrook does (www.backporchartess.blogspot.com) may be a fun way to go - where she journals based on themes that she explores. In any case, I am excited to find a way to just get the juices flowing - to jumpstart my creative spirit. How about you, what way are you allowing 2009 to be a creative year?