Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. (Pablo Picasso)
since i talked about Morning Pages last week, i wanted to do a short post today on the 2nd tool that the author discusses at the beginning of the book – The Artist Date. i realize i probably should have done both of these first, but oh well 🙂 here we go…
the author talks about how the morning pages and the artist date work together.
Think of this combination of tools in terms of a radio receiver and transmitter…Doing your morning pages, you are sending – notifying yourself and the universe of your dreams, dissatisfactions, hopes. Doing your artist date, you are receiving – opening yourself to insight, inspiration, guidance.
what exactly is an artist date? an artist date is a block of time that you set aside every week to nurture your inner artist. it’s an excursion, a play date if you will. you do not take anyone on the artist date, except for your inner artist. no friends, spouses, kids, etc. if this sounds difficult, it is. believe it or not, the artist date has been the most difficult thing for me. but what good is it to keep sending, without receiving. if this sounds stupid or you wonder how you can find the time, identify that as resistance 🙂
just like a loved one, your artist needs to be taken out, pampered, and listened to. it needs quality time. you might be thinking, “i don’t even go on dates with my spouse…it’s too expensive!” you don’t have to spend money. time is more important than money. go to the beach, watch an old movie, visit an art gallery. be creative!
the author says, “commit yourself to a weekly artist date and then watch your killjoy side try to wiggle out of it.” this was exactly how it was for me. learn to guard against this. if you give in to this killjoy the first week (like i did!) don’t give up…try again the next week. recognize this resistance as a fear of intimacy, self-intimacy, because that’s exactly what it is.
go on a date with your inner artist this week. i’d love to hear your stories about how it goes!
happy Monday!
xoxo
jess
This was the hardest part for me! I would be so excited for the date but always ended up skipping it. The times I did take my inner artist on a date I absolutely LOVED it! You’ve inspired me to restart the book since I didn’t finish it the first time. I miss the eye opening experience of the morning pages. Good luck with your Artist Dates!