Sunday, August 1, 2010

Coloring in the Lines

I'm taking a break from writing about Mormonism.  I'm reading a book right now called, The Artist's Way, or something like thatI'm not very far but it's already helping me think outside the box.  If you know me, you may be thinking, but you already think outside the box!  Yes, but I'm stuck!  and I think I know why;  it's summer.  In the summer I have no routines or schedules to use to plan around.  I used to think that rules and routines were constricting (and they still feel that way) but as my anxiety creeps in as the summer goes by I realize that rules and routines have a great function in my life.  They give me guidance and boundaries so I can be creative without worrying about coloring outside the lines.  I used to work with a group of women who were very organized and could formulate an efficient plan to acheive a goal.  Within that kind of structure I could be as absolutely creative as I wanted to be because I KNEW they would reign in the pieces that didn't fit and cut out the ideas that didn't work.  On the other hand, when I've worked with unorganized people who can't see the big picture and do a lot of micro managing, I don't have the freedom to be creative because I have to spend a lot of time worrying about details and whether my ideas are going to work well or not.  We still have a month of summer vacation left and I am faithfully taking my medication, (which the pharmacy gave me another NEW generic, which is another topic I would like to cover!) So, I'm going to try to enjoy our last month of no schedules and when school starts, I'll be grateful to get up at 6 a.m. 

2 comments:

Renee Vaughan said...

I entirely agree... you need to have a box before you can think outside of it.

P.S. I love The Artist's Way, and I have a prayer book by the same author. I'll bring it tonight.

southsidefamily said...

What a perfect way to describe that August panic I get every year! From one ENFP to another thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm buying the book you talked about here, cause I'm only half way through and it's already overdue! ha.