Creativity, continued

Last night, after writing, I went to bed with a book of poetry:

And I found this poem:

The Blue Bowl

Reward

ALL day I did the little things, 

The little things that do not show,

I brought the kindling for the fire

I set the candles in a row,

I filled a bowl with marigolds,

The shallow bowl you love the best--

And made the house a pleasant place

Where weariness might take its rest.

The hours sped on, my eager feet

Could not keep pace with my desire.

So much to do, so little time!

I could not let my body tire;

yet, when the coming of the night

Blotted the garden from my sight,

And on the narrow, graveled walks

Between the guarding flower stalks

I heard your step: I was not through

With services I meant for you.

You came into the quiet room

That glowed enchanted with the bloom

Of yellow flame.  I saw your face,

Illumined by the firelit space,

Slowly grow still and comforted--

"It's good to be at home," you said.

        

                      Blanche Bane Kuder

Wasn't that simply lovely?

And then, this post from Stephanie Nielsen:

"I love when I stay at home all day and cook, clean, organize, garden and other wonderful housewife-work. Which is what I happily did today, and feeling very content about it.
I strongly believe that housework is the most rewarding feeling.

I enjoy the thoughts of my children coming home from school to a clean warm home.
I love thinking that when they use the bathroom, the white tile is clean,
fresh smelling soap and plenty of fluffy toilet paper available.
I love when they drop their backpacks and coats down in the entryway, {sometimes}
and run to the kitchen to see what is cooking, and I love when there is something cooking.
I love seeing rocks and treasures in Ollie's jean pockets when I do the wash.
And I hate to think that my children will be old one day and
I wont do those things for them anymore.
I do those things for my husband and children to show them that I love them so."

And, this from President Uchtdorf in the October 2008 General Conference:

"If you are a mother, you participate with God in His work of creation—not only by providing physical bodies for your children but also by teaching and nurturing them. If you are not a mother now, the creative talents you develop will prepare you for that day, in this life or the next.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. ⁵ The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

What you create doesn’t have to be perfect. So what if the eggs are greasy or the toast is burned? Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

If you still feel incapable of creating, start small. Try to see how many smiles you can create, write a letter of appreciation, learn a new skill, identify a space and beautify it.

Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.” ⁶

The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you."

And so, this is my repentance moment.  I may not have time to create projects like I want to, but I am creating an environment where eternal beings live, and that is very important.  

And I have been motivated to do it better through the writings of three great individuals.

Creativity, part one....

A while ago, I read this book:

which basically made me realize how very unorganized I'd been living.  It contrasts people who are Right Brained with the other crazy people.  Actually, the point of the book is that Left Brained people have an easier time maintaining organization.  The cool memory trick the author used to distinguish characteristics of the brain halves is this:  Right Brainers are creative, impulsive, and generally messy.  You can think of the letter R as a very curly, complicated letter to represent these people.  Left Brained people are linear thinkers (think of the straight lines of an L).  They have an easier time maintaining order and routines and they think in logical sequences without deviating.
I'm quite sure I have a brain that is dominated by a very strong Right hemisphere that lords over the weak left.  I've been trying in the last few years to strengthen my left side, but I sure like thinking creatively more than linearly.
When I was a kid, my mom was so willing to let me carry my creativity to the limit.  I would spend hours on projects that had no seeming purpose, and she would not say a word!  Bless her heart.  She has been my inspiration as I have watched my children make such things as fur-covered blocks or cardboard cars.
Which brings me to the question:  should creativity be encouraged if there is no visible, useful outcome?  Is the process as important as the product?  Did artists such as Monet make a lot of junk as a kid?
Creativity is a blessing and a curse.  I think creative people have more fun.  I learned in my favorite college course that creative people are not disturbed by clutter (hence the condition of my house).  My friend told me of a T.V. show she watched where they went into the offices of some of the best producers and writers.  Their desks were covered with papers, and the rooms were a mess, and yet they could put out brilliant work in that atmosphere.  Creative people produce awesome musicals, paintings, inventions, songs, etc.  Right brained people will add color to a gathering of friends!
And yet, we need to learn to conform, to be on time, to not live in utter chaos, to manage money, and to fix some square meals and put things on a calendar.  Ugh. 
During the last month of my pregnancy, I went a little psycho.  I started labeling everything in the house.  I actually enjoyed it.  It was nesting, carried to the extreme.  Staying up late painting and putting things in baskets and bins and putting labels Everywhere!  I even labeled the fridge shelves, and one even had a label for "Reconstituted Milk"!  I very very rarely reconstitute milk.  Ha!  It became so radical that Cory started labeling things, too.  He made labels for the wood pile, the doorknob, the towel rack, etc.  He even made a label that said "Levi" and put it on my tummy.  Too funny. 
So the house was quite orderly, except for my closet which seemed way too daunting, and I was happy.  Or, so I thought.  I would freak out if things landed on the floor or if they weren't put in their designated, labeled spot.  I vacuumed all the time and disinfected all the surfaces.  I organized my spices, medicines, washcloths, pillowcases, books, appliances, pantry, etc., etc., etc.  And I think I was a unfun to live with.  Maybe the reason I came to this conclusion, and you can disagree with me if you want to,  is that when I would see someone in our family put something in the wrong place I would feel lasers shoot from my eyes and I would growl at them. 
And then Levi was born and I relaxed a little and Cory is thrilled I have something to care about other than the coat closet, and we are all very, very happy.  
I think creative order is the goal.  Is there such a thing?
I wish I were better at routines and doing things the same way every time.  I wish I didn't consider laundry so very boring when compared with the hundreds, no thousands, of projects I'd like to be working on.  Because, face it.  Laundry is a big part of my life.  I chose that when I had five kids.  There aren't many creative ways to do laundry.  But it is important and must be done. 
I wish I could be "content", as the Book of Mormon says, with what has been allotted to me, and not constantly have the desire to elaborate on what I have.
My life is soooo good.  I love being an American, a mom, a wife, a homemaker.   I just need to figure out how to live my life in an organized, but creative way. 
Hmmm....

Creativity, part deux

We have creative children....

 They like to make costumes...

 Play with Play Dough...

 (This is a little depiction of Lehi's dream)

 Make up silly games (FHE activity from Saxton)


Make crafts, cakes, and generally use each other as canvases (artwork on faces: courtesy Ellie)....

Thoughts from Levi

 You know, when I think about it....

 This world can be a little harsh to come into...

 But I love my soft blankets...

 And the way people keep looking at me like I'm the cutest thing ever...

 Hmmm.  Yes, as I think some more,

 I can see

 This isn't such a bad place after all.

 If you look around you'll find plenty of things to give you hope.

 And beauty.

 And Peace.

 Yes, I like it.

I guess I'll stay.





Welcome to the world, Levi Monty.  We need you here.

Caramel Popcorn-- yummm

Mom's Recipe- the best, of course, I've ever had.  It is soft and delicious-- not the crunchy kind, which has its place.

3/4 c. white sugar

3/4 c. brown sugar

1 cube margarine (I use butter)

1/2 c. Karo syrup (light)

1/4 c. water

1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

Cook to soft ball stage (I drop small amount in cold water to cool quickly and see if it is the consistency I'd like).  Add 1/4 tsp soda.  Beat and pour over popcorn (I use 2/3 c. kernels of corn)

Grandma Wee Wee

Grandma Wee Wee on the Left, Cory's mom Liz on the Right.

We Stayed with Grandma last weekend.  Her real name is Eva Ruth Billman.  She is a lot of fun and has so much to teach us!

Grandma's Spices

11-12-10

I had Grandma Wee Wee give me a tour of her home today, and teach me how she organizes her things.  It was very enlightening!  I don’t think there are many people who could just open up all their drawers and cupboards for a person at a moment’s notice. 

I took notes as we went, and here are some of the things I gained:

”I am a box and bin person” she said, opening a kitchen cupboard.  She had several small Tupperware containers labeled with spices.  They stacked neatly and it was easy to see the contents of each.  I asked her if she bought her spices in bulk, because they were larger containers than the ones that spices come in now.  She said she did and there was a place in Washington you could get a big container of Cinnamon for $5.  I asked about Tupperware being an investment.  She said it was at the time but that she waited until they could afford it and then bought it, and she has used them ever since.  

Homemade Drawer Dividers

She showed me her kitchen drawers.  She made dividers in them by glueing strips of wood in the front and back and then sliding a piece of Masonite down between the strips.  It’s easy to take out and clean and it’s sturdy. 

Under her kitchen sink she built a little shelf so that she would use the vertical space more efficiently.  It was covered in linoleum for easy cleaning.  She attached a lid holder to the cupboard door and it had scrubbies and toothbrushes in it for easy access to clean the sink/stove.

Her pan drawers were deep, with several low, big boxes that were labeled so that she could pull out what she needed (Her homemade slide out drawers)

Another cupboard has Tupperware with all kinds of dry goods—spaghetti, Bisquick mix, Graham Crackers, Chocolate Chips, etc.   She said many of these products are in the garage in buckets, and she will go out and refill the smaller Tupperware containers as needed.  It looked very neat and tidy, like the spice cabinet.

Another cupboard had boxes which had been covered with Contact Paper.  These were open on the top and held her magazines, cookbooks, and patterns.

In her dish cupboard she pointed out there was nothing old or broken.  She just kept the functional stuff. 

Egg Container in Fridge

She sections her fridge into containers...

Of course a shoe rack as well as shoe shelves she built, to the left. 

She built this shelf and added hooks underneath for storing her necklaces.

I pulled out some of her sewing trims wrapped around cardboard.  Awesome.

Buttons and small notions, all labeled.

Craft paint, labeled and sectioned in a drawer according to hue

these are the yellows

Scrapbooks through the years-- she uses parts of cards to decorate the pages.

Scrapbooking Supplies

Cute House :)

Definitely a homey, Grandma's house feeling here!

Fuzzy picture of her family birthday calendar

Her sock drawer is divided with cardboard which has been hot glued to the inside of the drawer.  She does this with many drawers!

Canned goods on rolling shelves

Home canned goods in shelves built to certain heights for jars.

 So, here are some ideas to chew on.  She's fabulous.  Most of her organizing methods are not expensive, as she is one of those great children from the depression.   But they work and they have served her well for many years.  She inspires me to be better and take care of the home I've been given.