Creativity
As spring is here again, and I look outside my windows, and see the beautiful and delicate pink blossoms of the cherry tree, the beginning of the lilac blooms, and the bright yellow daffodils, I recall of all of the images I made last year and the years before. Every year I take more photographs of the flowers, plants and trees around my house. Call it an obsession if you wish, but I guess I just want to honor the beauty of these flowers and plants because each year presents a new cycle of life for them and why shouldn’t I want to capture it?
Snow Drops - 2008
But sometimes I wonder, if the best images are behind me. Could I ever take a photo of a daffodil that will be more magical than the last? Or, because of the experience I gained by photographing them before, will I take one that is even better?
Here is a quote from Edward Abbey I found after I traveled to Europe back in 1995 that touches on the above question.
“Don’t worry,” he adds, “it’ll all still be here next spring.”
The sun goes down, I face the road again, we light up our after-dinner cigars. Keeping the flame alive. The car races forward through a world dissolving into snow and night.
Yes, I agree that’s a good thought and it better be so. Or by God there might be trouble. The desert will still be here in the spring. And then comes another thought. When I return will it be the same? Will I be the same? Will anything ever be quite the same again? If I return.
What got me waxing poetic about this was the presentation I watched of Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing creativity on TED.com. I thoroughly enjoyed her book, Eat Pray Love, which she mentions in this talk about creativity. She is honest about the fact that perhaps her highest achievement is behind her and how even still she wants to continue to create. How can she / we not? Creative people create. That’s how it works. It’s definitely worth your time to watch this video, perhaps not right this minute, but save it for a time when you’re ready to listen and think about your own creativity.
