Renewing the Self
August 18th 2010 12:32
I'm sure you're all aware that I live in a city, a 'great urban center' known as Toronto, Ontario. I do love my city dearly, but I tire of it after a while. I get tired of the daily rush, of the TTC, of the people all around me. I get tired of the big buildings and the poisoned lake. I get tired of the drama, and I get tired of the drunks and drug addicts covering the streets with their trouble.
We all get tired of our daily lives from time to time. We fall into ruts, we let life carry us away, and sometimes the stress builds until we're sick not just in mind but in body as well. And we never slow down to help ourselves, to sort through our mental stresses, to enjoy the simple beauty of the world all around us.
Tomorrow I am leaving this great urban center in favor of a small town with a big river and nothing to do. I'll be gone until Sunday afternoon, so there won't be any posts until Monday.
How do I intend to renew myself on this journey?
I'm going to take a walk through the trees Thursday night and meditate with my feet in the river Friday morning. I'll wander through the town until I'm hopelessly lost and then text my friend for directions back. I'll sit for a few hours and write with nobody around and nothing but the forest and its life to keep me company.
What am I going to write?
I'm going to be working on back story for my current Story of Choice (SoC?), the tale of the kingdom of Llyr. I'll probably do a brief write up of the history of Llyr and brief write ups of a couple important characters. I'm also going to do one last paper edit of Good Bye, and I'm hoping to get some work done on my newsletter and my workshop for next month.
But most of all, I'm just looking forward to having my phone off and not hearing a word from the city for a couple of days.
How do you renew yourself?
We all get tired of our daily lives from time to time. We fall into ruts, we let life carry us away, and sometimes the stress builds until we're sick not just in mind but in body as well. And we never slow down to help ourselves, to sort through our mental stresses, to enjoy the simple beauty of the world all around us.
Tomorrow I am leaving this great urban center in favor of a small town with a big river and nothing to do. I'll be gone until Sunday afternoon, so there won't be any posts until Monday.
How do I intend to renew myself on this journey?
I'm going to take a walk through the trees Thursday night and meditate with my feet in the river Friday morning. I'll wander through the town until I'm hopelessly lost and then text my friend for directions back. I'll sit for a few hours and write with nobody around and nothing but the forest and its life to keep me company.
What am I going to write?
I'm going to be working on back story for my current Story of Choice (SoC?), the tale of the kingdom of Llyr. I'll probably do a brief write up of the history of Llyr and brief write ups of a couple important characters. I'm also going to do one last paper edit of Good Bye, and I'm hoping to get some work done on my newsletter and my workshop for next month.
But most of all, I'm just looking forward to having my phone off and not hearing a word from the city for a couple of days.
How do you renew yourself?
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Comment by RedParrot
How do I renew? Hmm ... I think I renew by taking in new experiences. Vacations are classic for this but I'm also up for new stuff at work, new food, new locations, new ideas, new music ...
Having a rest ... sleep ... doing nothing is also nice.
Switching media ... ie plays to novels to flash fiction to sewing to drawing ... creative is creative.
Experiements are also fun ... this is a riff on "something new" but in a creative sense.
Enjoy your time out of the city! This weekend I'm in a race (never gone this distance before). And will be dressed in a costume of my own making (huge fun ... I had forgotten how much enjoyment I get from sewing costumes). Will be surrounded by new people, old friends and it will be another new experience.
For now, we pray for low humidity and no rain ...
See you when you get back!
Cheers!
RP
Comment by Dianna G
I Wish This Was 42
Fictional Worlds
Thanks for the well wishes. I agree with a lot of the things you've said spark new creativity-new experiences of all kinds can do the trick.
I think taking care of ourselves-not only our needs but to keep our experiences growing and to keep learning all the time-is the most important thing about the creative life. If we do not give ourselves new experiences and time away, we will never grow as people.
Low humidity and no rain sounds good to me. I'm also hoping for some beautiful stars overhead come tomorrow night...
~Dianna