What Makes Sense — Donna Hopkins

My friend Kate has this theory that when a person, place, thing or idea comes her way at least 3 times it’s a sign that she should take notice, pay attention, and act. I love this about her—the way she is in tune and open to the kind offerings of the universe, without becoming a slave to every single idea and whim.

I don’t know if these 3 things are the same, but they feel related, and as though there is some message I am meant to attend to.

1. Comparison. This world can be a pretty harsh place, and finding where I belong is sometimes a struggle. Maybe it’s that way for us all? I often find that I know what’s best for myself, but there is that voice in my head listing all of the ways I am wrong. I doubt I’ll ever be one of those people who just does not care what others think (and I’m not really sure going all the way to that end of the spectrum is the best option either). But I’d like to feel comfortable (less defensive and fragile) when I am out-of-step with the rest of the marching band.

I loved this essay by Samantha Irby, My Taste is Basic. So What? And I’ve taken her advice. Whenever someone questions me about my choices (what I wear, what I eat, how I spend my money, what kinds of pictures I make), I’ve taken to saying, “I like it that way!” Problem solved or at least problem softened.

2. Poetry. I’ve tried to write a few poems, and I still feel called to try again and again. But mostly I love to read poetry. My friend, Jan Falls, featured a beautiful poem today on her blog, Heart Poems, What Makes Sense by Carrie Newcomer, and these lines settled into my soul.

To the last red radish and first blueberry.
I lift up my face to the summer sky
The sound of larks
And the feel of dirt
To all that keeps making sense
In senseless times.

3. Creativity. I’m participating in a coaching group, Aging with Vitality and Body Liberation, and the leader, Debra Benefield, asked us to list our top 5 core values. Truthfully, I wasn’t quite sure what she meant by core values, but I quickly wrote down these 5.

Creativity
Connection
Communication
Learning/adaptation
Exploration/adventure and awe

I’m sure there are more I might add but these are what I came up with instinctively.

And then there were these beautiful thoughts from David DuChemin, in his post, Creativity: The Missing Ingredient.

Creativity isn't one thing, it's not one characteristic of the human soul or mind, but many traits found in aggregate. Among other things, it is a combination of curiosity, resilience, and courage - all of which, it seems to me, are responses to an obstacle, a constraint. Curiosity is a response to a lack of knowledge, resilience is a response to failure, and courage to fear. Without those counterparts they have no reason to exist.