After I Create
/A dear friend and mentor recently accused me of getting defensive when I talked about things that I had created. He meant it as a (loving) criticism. My initial thoughts about his comment were, "Well, Duh! It's MY creation. I noticed the ember, I coaxed it to life, I birthed it. Of course I will defend the thing that labored over and had the courage to launch into the world."
But on reflection, I noticed that I was feeling a little shameful for my reaction. This feeling seemed to stem from a lack of gratitude. Gratitude about the fact that I had found inspiration and was able to convince it to stay with me as I created. This is no small gift from the universe. To be able to create anything at all is a special thing. Yet, not only did I take for granted the act of creation, I wanted to control the impressions, thoughts, and feelings of those who encounter my creation. What hubris!
I then remembered something I read in Elizabeth Gilbert's book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. (outstanding book, by the way) She wrote, "I can only be in charge of producing the work itself. That’s a hard enough job. I refuse to take on additional jobs, such as trying to police what anybody thinks about my work once it leaves my desk.”
Through that quote, I realized that once a thing is created, it is no longer mine. It has a life of it's own, based on the experiences of those who encounter it. No amount of explaining, debating, or rationalizing by me will truly change how it is experienced. Because creating is about the creator, the creation is about the beholder.
I invite you to relish letting go, as much as you do creating.
Peace.
