This is my Letter to the World

 

Good Morning on this first day of the new year and may it be a great year for all of us.  I am taking this moment to make a new declaration of intention for myself and my work.

On Thursday, the day before yesterday, I had lunch with a friend and the conversation took a turn that made me squirm in my seat. She  asked me about selling my work.  Well, yeah, I'd like to sell my work--that's the idea, but I feel like I shouldn't t really talk about that.  I promised her and myself that I'd think about it.

I woke up feeling remorseful and reluctant.

Brian Leher's guest this morning was Julia Cameron, the Author of 

 The Artist's Way; A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity.  

She published it in 1992.  I heard about her  shortly after I left my teaching job to concentrate more fully on my art. I still have the book, and it's full of notes.

Cameron has three rules, or tools for opening or nurturing creativity.

1.  Write three pages as soon as you wake up in the morning.  Done--I've been doing that for years, and I have  boxes of composition books to show for it.

2.  Once a week go on an "Artist's Date."  that is, do something just for fun, alone, to fill up the creative well.  Done--I do that all the time; a visit to the art supply store is an artists' date, and so is the supermarket--I love to look at the fruits and vegetables in the produce department, but I also go to museums and galleries and look at the work of other artists.

Walk--Done. Well, yes, if you live in this city, you walk and I find that ideas come when I'm walking--when my blood starts pumping faster my brain starts working as well.

Cameron talks about Synchronicity, a term originally coined by Carl Jung that refers to deeply meaningful coincidences which mysteriously occur in your life. 

Cameron says, you have to say what you want. Put it out to the world and eventually, with Synchronicity, it will come. The Universe conspires to make things work for us if we only ask.  She quotes everybody;

Jesus; "Ask and you shall receive!" 

Goethe;"Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has magic, grace and power in it." 

Somebody said, "Leap and the net will appear." Even 8:28, "All things work together for good."

OK, I'm asking. I'm saying it.  

I want to show and sell my work--yes, it's all for sale. 

I want to find a gallery to represent me.

I want to publish my blog posts as a book.

There, I've said it.  I'm now waiting for lighting to strike me down. Wait, no, that's not for me--that's St. Barbara's Dad.

What are you putting out to the Universe?  or as Mary Oliver asked,

What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?