Art and Creativity as a Calming Meditation During Difficult Times

With Covid-19 and many other troubles weighing heavily on many people's lives, it can be easy to slide down into a place of frustration and helplessness, and even depression.

So what do you do, to stay balanced and grounded? What can you do?

This post is a little bit of a departure from my normal "fare" here, inspired in part by the @art-venture project, as well as by @stef1 who so often shares her lovely paintings in her posts.

Our local beach on a sunny winter day

Art as Catharsis and Meditation

I don't talk much about my art here, even though in a distant past a number of fellow Steemians actually purchased or won some of my pieces... but I thought I would bring it up again, in a completely different sort of context.

My artistic/creative expression — aside from writing extensively — comes in the form of painting very detailed and intricate mandala patterns on beach stones.

Although this creative activity has always been a form of relaxation, for the part year it has really become an important part of my emotional and mental well-being.

A selection of my hand painted beach stones.

Multi-Faceted Ways to Distract Myself

Taking walks on the beach is one of the few available activities still possible during times of lockdown, and that's where my process begins. Fortunately, we live no more than a couple of minutes' walk from the ocean (well, a quiet bay off the ocean), so access is easy.

Because it's a fairly thinly populated area, I often have the beach to myself... and it enables me to not only get some fresh air, but also to be alone in a place of natural beauty where I can more or less forget about all the turbulence and worries of the world... at least for a few hours.

The actual design and painting phase is also a meditation.

Some might be given to think that focusing on such a tiny and intricate pattern would be stressful and tiring... but what is a meditation but extremely focused intention?

When I sit down and start painting, there is only one place for me to direct my attention... because if I don't, I will soon enough make a mistake, and then potentially many hours of work will end up as nothing more than a colorful decoration on the wall in our vegetable garden.

Unlike a canvas, once you make a mistake with a detailed painting on stone, there's no "whiting over" your mistake... you're done and must re-start from scratch!

Keeping My Sanity!

Although I don't always feel inspired to work on painting a stone, I do strive to sit down and work just a little, at least 3-4 days a week.

Each stone is different; each design is different; each outcome is unique. As such, I never grow bored with it, even though the casual observer might see what I'm doing and think "it's all the SAME."

Regardless of whether the finished stone is what I'd consider "a good one" that ends up in one of my online stores, or a "junker" that ends up in the garden, the calming effect and healing value is unmistakable. And that's why I highly recommend artistic and creative endeavors during these times of Covid... not just because creating art is rewarding, but because of the healing value!

Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful weekend!

How about YOU? Do you pursue some sort of creative activity? Do you find that it helps you keep your mind off worry and the troubles of the world? Is your art a meditation of sorts, for you? Give me a shout back... Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

(All text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is ORIGINAL CONTENT, created expressly for this platform — NOT A CROSSPOST!!!)
Created at 20210212 21:05 PST
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