Motherhood & Creativity

Hi all,

As a kid, I thought I was not creative. I don’t believe that anymore, and I have my kids to thank for that.

I am the mother 2 amazing girls (9 and 5) and there is a game we love to play: histórias misturadas (in Portuguese), mixed stories (in English). Here is how it goes: my girls define up to 10 different topics and/or people that should be included in a bed-time story and I make it up on the spot. It is so much fun! We always end up with a completely crazy story and way too excited, which is not the purpose of bed-time stories at all! We love these moments, and I believe they contributed to the re-awakening of my creativity. It’s like my brain falls into a completely different mode of operation and possibilities become endless. Giddiness and excitement bubbles up in me when I invent a silly little story with no sense, no laws physics, or constraints to reality (1). Playing this game with my kids made me realize how much I needed to have more fun and creativity in my life.

Suddenly I felt the urge to stat creating something for myself, just because I wanted to. My creative expression has always been drawing, a skill that I had been ignoring for many years. So, in 2022 I decided to make drawing a habit in my life. However, with a career, a household, a family with 2 kids (with all the parties, swimming lessons, music lessons, etc), coming across time to indulge in an activity for myself seemed like an impossibility, until I came across two books. Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results by James Clear, and Morpho, anatomy for artists by Michel Lauricella, gave me the tools start my regular creative practice. I decided to recreate the drawings in Morpho from start to finish. To create a consistent habit I would draw every single day as soon as my girls were asleep. My sketchbook and pencils were always ready and visible at my desk, so that I would have no excuse not to do it. I could draw as long or as little as I wanted, as long as I did it every single day. I started on 17 March 2022 and it took me 1 month to complete it. You can see a couple of pages of my sketchbook, associated to this blog post. The visible progress was a great motivation, but also the sense of calmness that drawing provided to my brain. 

It is now almost 4 years that I have been creating art by drawing or painting regularly, and it has been very impactful on my wellbeing, which is something for another blog. My kids are my biggest supporters, and there is no better motivation to keep creating.

If you are still here, thank you visiting my website and reading my quick little blog. I wish you a fantastic and creative day. ‘Till next time.

Cheers,

Rita

(1) A small note to mention that I spend my days being a manager in a scientific environment, so being able to do this is quite a relief!