Recently we discovered that our oldest son is nearly blind in his left eye. The doctor said that his eye stopped developing at age two months because it has a different focal “mechanism” than his right eye. As a result, his right eye is compensating and his brain has learned to receive information from his right eye only and discard his left eye.
This problem is correctable, but it will require our son to wear glasses for about four years. The doctor says that his eye will eventually learn to focus correctly and his brain will begin to recognize it. By age eight, his eyesight will be as good as it ever could have been.
We’re happy.
Here’s a thought:
There are parts of us - our our creative selves - that are in atrophy and lying dormant. We don’t recognize it because other parts of us make up for the loss, but with the right tools and systems we can gradually, over time, start to train ourselves to use these hidden abilities and to focus on the possibilities they present. First we must recognize them, which is usually done by someone we are in community with, and second we must develop habits and disciplines around “re-awakening” them.
The artist is not someone who has incredible hand-eye coordination or motor mechanisms, the artist is someone who sees Reality behind reality. The artist looks at things in a different way and is able to extract that meaning and put it “out there” for consumption.
Are there skills and passions in you that are lying dormant? Are there systems or disciplines that would help you focus them and draw them out?
It takes intentionality to engage with creative projects on our own time - they don’t just make themselves. In this episode, we talk about some disciplines that can help us creatively engage and get moving on our “pet” projects.
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