Dreaming

It's 8:40am on Saturday and although I really wanted to sleep in, I guess this is considered late in my book. :)

I had two great dreams last night/this morning. They're more visual than I can describe (as dreams usually are) but it felt great to have the visions. In the first one, I was in my studio: high ceilings, exposed rafters, plenty of space. And I was showing someone around. I think they went to touch this huge easel I had and I told them that they could look around, but please don't touch the easel. I felt a very strong bond with my artistic self in the dream. I had embodied the archetypal artist. I don't paint in real life, but in the dream, I definitely was a painter (which inspires me to look into possibly taking a painting class) and I felt confident and attached to my work and my medium. I distinctly remember thinking that I had space. It wasn't a tiny, makeshift room that I crammed my supplies into, it was a nice, high ceiling, lofted space, with white walls and minimal things in it. Oooh...it was great!

The second dream: I walked into this amazing bead store...I think there was more than beads, but the theme was that one could string things (large, small, etc). My cousin in Spokane works in an amazing yarn shop (Holy Threads...you should go there...it's awesome!) and this place definitely reminded me of it...it was incredibly inspiring. The woman who owned it was similar to me: very funky, creative, more interested in the art than in the sale...she was like an artistic mentor or guru. Her store was fabulous. It was filled with colors and combinations of colors that literally made my heart sing...it was enough just walking around, feeling the vibration of the colors. I wanted to stay right there. I had all these ideas rush in: I could use this with that color, I could wear this bead like this, ooh! I never thought of drilling a hole in this for a necklace! It was fantastic. And people were coming in, getting ideas, looking through books, talking with other strangers in the store...but it was like they weren't strangers at all...an invisible, boundaryless artist collective. I stayed in there til the end of the dream. I know I heard the owner tell me something important or inspiring, but the words escape me. I am just thankful I dream in color.

Both of those were interestingly important to me. I've been a bit distant from the process in the past couple of days. Several distractions have led me off into another place in my life, and yet my dreams are in full effect (previously, I have not been dreaming this much...when I worked all day, I did not have the leisure to remember my dreams) and they are quite a saving grace. I love them! We will get a table in the living room soon so that 1)we can sit at a table with friends for dinner and 2) so that I don't have to work with my sewing machine hunched over on our coffee table.

What I love is that I now feel a tension (a good tension) regarding doing anything creative. I don't often hear the voice of "Don't bother doing THAT" whispering in my ear. Now I just feel an impulse. And it's funny, but the impulse is way more daring than I imagined it would be. I have these clothes now that I LOVE to wear but I was so worried that adding anything "crazy" would make me tire of them too soon...but no, I love it. And since I know how to remove the alterations, I feel okay about make drastic moves. Josh says he can see me opening a clothing boutique and selling my stuff (as well as some of my friends' stuff!) and although it seems a long way off, I must admit, the thought does appeal to me. I had visions the other day about teaching people to sew basic things, getting sewing machines donated, encouraging those with a mroe creative streak to create clothes that they wanted to wear and save the $$ while increasing the style.
I read in "Everday Enlightenment" about finding something that feels good to do in service and oddly enough, it has usually been the domestic arts: cooking, baking, making clothes, that have always appealed to me in terms of service. Sure, most people aren't thinking about making clothes or baking pastries when they can't pay rent, but those two things are an affordable form of not only entertainment and distraction, but a great source of confidence and creativity. I've always wanted to do something like that...perhaps I can research more.

There's a book called "House of Belief" and the author collaborates with artists and new owners of Habit for Humanity homes and helps the new owners create these AMAZING interiors...it's really inspiring. I wanted to be a part of it the second I read the book...I try to use some of her ideas in my own home...anyway, something like that.

Now that I have a much stronger connection to El Salvador, I have also been day dreaming about bringing this kind of service down there. I don't know what it would look like (but I always like the idea of having an awesome hostel/B&B where the furnishings were made by the young adults who run the place), and it excites me to have the possibilities so accessible!

I'm also interested in having classes or just workshops where people can learn about their artistic process...where they can bring that creativity closer to home, outside an educational institution (art school can be less than inspiring sometimes), and give them ideas to continue their relationship to the tactile, visual, etc.

Well, I think that's all for now...I'm interested in hearing from others about their inspiring dreams...what they imagine...a special place in France/Italy/Ecuador to write in, an amazing retreat with a dance studio, a wood working shop with bamboo all around, ready for harvest?

Dream on....