Entry 13 - Creative Commitment

 

Matt: It’s 3am and I am on deadline. It’s been a hard day. It’s been a LONG day. My wife is asleep, my son is asleep, my daughter is asleep. I’m not. Even so, I feel more alive doing this than anything else I could think of! Practicality tells me I should really being working - you know - WORKING - the stuff that generates income, pays the bills, keeps food in the fridge. But instead, I’m finishing up an illustration that will go up on a blog that maybe a hundred people (hopefully more) will visit this week. And not one of those visitors will pay a dime to see what either I or Lisa will post this week. And, you know what... that makes absolutely no difference to me. Why? Because I’m happy. I’m excited. I’m alive. No longer merely existing.

I really look forward to sitting down with Lisa every few weeks and having our standard 2 1/2 hour talks over coffee about simply ‘EVERYTHING’ in our heads. Creativity, life, spirituality, art, people, music, literature, culture, politics, possibilities, synchronicity, collaboration, physics, the paranormal, comedy, cinema, God, the economy... the list goes on and on and on. And so do we... writing things down, sketching, breying out loud like two free-range juvenile donkeys, rolling our eyes, gafawing, high five-ing, furrowing our brows. We are LIVING.

How many people get THAT chance? Or rather, how many people TAKE that chance?

Lisa: I've known a LOT of hard working people in my life and Matt, YOU have to be one of the top picks for the Overtime Oscar. You always keep things moving and productive. I often get emails from you that were written in the wee hours of the morning.

Me: "Good God Man, go to BED!!!".

But no. There you are, with your priorities very straight making it all work. That's why THIS post of yours makes me SO happy!

I can just feel the bubbly effervescence sizzling off the pen as you draw furiously and that brain visualizes colors, soundtracks, video  (probably even Smell) and every detail of the creative piece that's coming to fruition. You're SO right about the feeling of being ALIVE... that place of time loss and unidentifiable energy source. Working as we are for the moment, in our Creative Group, we can do/make/say anything that we want to. I love the fact that we have animators, videographers, sound techs, musicians, stylists, writers and other brilliant people circling us and asking: "...what can I do?...can I play too?..."

Yes. It's starting to gain momentum. I'm just grateful that when so many things seem to be off kilter, there's a place of sanity and healthy creative output. It's always within the circle of our Tribe.

Comments

[Seth]

This post makes me happy to. The feeling of life, exuberance, joy, and excitement is palpable here in both the words and that wonderful sketch. There is nothing like that place where you are lost in what you love!

[Julie]

LIVE. What is the other option?

[Marylinn Kelly]

The reality of creating, of even thinking about creating, of being encircled by people with whom to talk about creating...simply eclipses any other version of reality. It is the juciest orange in the bag.

[Lisa MB]

I'm one of the hundred (thousand million) reading this blog! Go Lisa and Matt!

And thanks so so much for the overtime.

[JeriAnn]

My most common inner temper tantrum is always -- "Why can't I play for a living?" I want to sit at the feet of those who have accomplished this and learn how to do it, too. Maybe it's not too late for me.

Thanks again for another thought-provoking entry, Matt and Lisa.

Now off to bed!

[Chris]

ya just do it cause you hafta do it. ya gotta!

[Stephanie]

oh you guys...you continue to inspire me!

Happy to be on of those hundred or so souls that found my way here.

x..x
steph