It’s About Having Fun
I enjoyed visiting some of the 2013 participants in 31 Days and as the 2014 participants are linking up, I’ve started visiting them as well. To my pleasant surprise, one of the 2014 participants I visited happened to be one that I browsed nearly all of her 2013 entries for 31 Days!
As I left a note for her, I nearly said:
I hope you are even more successful with 2014 than you were with 2013!
Sheesh. What a mistake. Thankfully, I did NOT write that. Instead, I wrote:
I’d like to say I hope 2014 is as awesome, but that’s not fair. You don’t want the trap of trying to top each year, you want to relax and enjoy wherever the ride takes you.
And she loved it! But it wasn’t just for her sake that I wrote this, it was for mine also.
It’s about having fun, not about being perfect. It’s about enjoying what I’m doing to be creative, not trying to be as good or better than all the wonderful things I see out there and that I think I could do just as well, if only I tried harder.
I need my own style, my own eye, and mostly, I need to smile and laugh more.
Interestingly, my word for 2014 is “remember” as in “remember to smile”. My notebook has a Post-It on the front that says:
Smile
Laugh
Be Joyful
I’ve been taking a class from Ali Edwards called “One Little Word“. At the beginning of each month, I get a short handout and video, with a challenge to make sure I’m benefiting from my word. In September, the challenge was a) what is the story I’m telling myself about my word; b) is the story accurate; and c) what is the real story.
I started the year with good intentions and did remember to smile, laugh and be more joyful. But as the year has gone on, I’m not. It’s been a bunch of things, from the layoffs at work to being tired (a common theme for me) to just not being mindful that I can be happier if I want.
So the story to myself to nurture my creativity is not let everything get me down so badly. Have fun!! Enjoy floundering around as I try out new things, whether photography related or not. Be curious, be adventurous, stay flexible, and just relax into my wonderful and blessed life.
You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching,
Love like you’ll never be hurt,
Sing like there’s nobody listening,
And live like it’s heaven on earth.
― William W. Purkey
Life is short, Break the Rules.
Forgive quickly, Kiss SLOWLY.
Love truly. Laugh uncontrollably
And never regret ANYTHING
That makes you smile.
― Mark Twain
To look at the 2013 posts for 31 Days, go here. Two blogs I particularly enjoyed were 31 Days Creative Habit and 31 Days Without Armor (about living an authentic life).
To see everything I’m doing with my 31 Days of Nurturing My Creativity, click here.
31 Days Life Lessons Write 31 Days 31 Days Ali Edwards Mark Twain nurturing nurturing creativity One Little Word remember smile William Purkey Write 31 Days write31days
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I am a backyard adventurer, philosopher and observer, recording my life in journals and photographs. Visit my blog at www.livingtheseasons.com.
Living The Seasons 
Good reminders in this post. I had almost forgotten my word for the year (“faith”). I love the challenges you received in September. They stirred up my own stories about the word, and I’m in a place now where faith is a good thing to have. :)
That’s why it’s fun reading each other’s blogs. We get all kinds of ideas going on! I’m glad you liked the September challenges and it had meaning for you.
Yes! Such a good reminder! I was starting to feel (self-imposed)pressure during this crazy week to get lots of things done, but that would be stressful and not fun. That’s what it’s all about!
You’re welcome. As I mentioned, I read nearly every entry from last year. My impression from your blog is that you do a really good job of it, but you’re not in it to make a living. Kind of like The Frugal Girl. Her blog pays its own expenses, but it’s real and it’s her. Sometimes it looks really professional and other times, not. But I always enjoy reading it to see what the family is up to lately. She’s honest and doesn’t sugar coat her life.
So that was why I was more careful in my note to you. It’s so easy to get into the “living up to what I see in Pinterest”. And then we burn out, lose our joy, and stop doing it.
Your rummage sale photos were a hoot, I enjoyed them, and you still got color in there! Your theme for this month is light hearted and that’s what we all need.
Nancy
P.S. I hope this makes sense. If not, I’ll try again.
It is all about having fun. I guess we just need to remind ourselves from time to time. My potter daughter says as soon as she thinks of her work as a chore, she loses all creativity and stops being productive.When she is just having fun with the clay all sorts of wonderful things happen. Keep smiling and having fun with your photography!
Have you ever noticed in the Olympics, the skaters most likely to take the gold medals are the ones who are losing, do not think they will win anymore, and they go out to skate for the pure enjoyment of it. We’ve seen several times where they end up with the gold because they went out and skated to just skate. We see that on Chopped sometimes too – the ones who win are likely to be there because they want to cook. The ones that focus on winning the money tend to get chopped.
And thanks for the encouragement. I am having fun. It’s so nice that I don’t have to support myself with it!
The Olympic skaters is a great example! Glad you’re having fun.