Hello friends,

I was recently interviewed by Jamie Ferguson of Blackbird Press about my new essay collection: Let Your Life Be Lighting - Creativity in Times of Strife. She posed several questions, asking whether I ever feel discouraged, what to say to people who feel like giving up, and how I create during difficult times.

In my answer to that last question, I called up inspiration from human history, and I think this might help you, too:

“Think of the poems written, songs sung, clothing made, and baskets woven by people living under the harshest conditions, even now. The human spirit is resilient, if we are able to make space for a bit of beauty, curiosity, and wonder when times feel hard. For me, creating for the long haul is helped by small, daily connections to that beauty: a raindrop on a leaf, some bright graffiti on an alley wall, a song, a flower growing in a ditch, crows winging through the sky… All of these serve to remind me that life continues, and is worth engaging with. The earth and our cosmos are constantly creating, every moment. We can, too.”

Resilience is adaptability, and the ability to recover when things fall apart. It is the opposite of brittle weakness, and different from powering through adversity by sheer grit and persistence. To be resilient is to consistently return to states of flexibility, health, and well-being, whether that is mentally, physically, spiritually, or emotionally.

In what ways do you feel resilient right now? Or what might help you cultivate a state of greater resilience?

And where does creativity enter the picture?

You can read the whole interview here: Let Your Life Be Lighting.

Best wishes — Thorn