Scarcity and Spaciousness

See the end of this message for the Send-Me-a-Photo request. 🙏🏽📷

Get Me Off This Train

I’m conjuring a new model for December events. My heart and my nervous system are demanding it.

As a crafter/artist, the holiday season brings on a palpable FOMO-SEEIG (Fear Of Missing Out on the Sales Everyone Else Is Getting). I like to believe I am not a minion of capitalism, but this time of year challenges all of my resolve. I never feel like I’m doing enough — of anything — and it’s hard to not get sucked into the game-of-shame vortex. It’s the very definition of a scarcity mindset.

One Experiment Gone Awry

It’s embarrassing, but I’m rescinding — with this email — an offer I sent out to my local folks a few days ago. Ironically, as soon as I published the recent podcast episode about SPACIOUSNESS, I went into a kind of half-assed hustle mode and created something called “Make-and-Shop.” But instead of feeling excited, I noticed a constriction in my chest each time I thought about it or checked to see if anyone had signed up. (They hadn’t.) The vibe was the opposite of spacious. So was the name. 😳

My psyche must have known I’d need reinforcement as I reached for my copy of The Art of Possibility last week for a reread. The authors refer to our dominant culture (they don’t call it white supremacy culture, but I will) as the world of measurement, in contrast to the universe of possibility. The world of measurement thrives on comparison, ranking, competition, urgency (hello, “Make-and-Shop”!), and the labeling of failure and success.

I aim to break free from all of that.

It’s hard. Especially in December, when it’s so tempting to judge my worthiness as a person, as an artist, as an entrepreneur, by how many people show up to my (theoretical) sales, how many items go out the door, and how many dollars I bring in. Ugh. There’s no holiday cheer in that equation.

Remembering What I Am About

That mode of accounting overshadows this truth: I light up when what I create inspires YOU to make something.

Like when I invite you to work on a mural, and you didn’t know you had the capacity to make a mural, and yet here you are doing it, and now you want to do more of it.

Or when I post how-to videos on YouTube, and you watch them as you work and send me a photo of your finished art piece. That’s an amazing connection, and we’ve never even met!

Or when I open my studio for you to come play around with paint, or interesting papers, or broken tile, or rusty hardware, and you allow yourself to be pulled outside of time into a meditative zone of possibility and expression. Your eyes light up and your shoulders relax and your breathing settles. I love that.

Those arenas are so full of possibility that it makes my heart glow. 💗Plus, they’re available year-round. I don’t need to rush-to-sell. Ahhhh. 🧘🏽

I believe I’m here on earth in this lifetime to cut through all the B.S. that prevents us from living artful lives. To remind you — as I needed to remember, myself — that creativity is our human essence, our super-power.

Letting Ideas Simmer

In this module of heART❤️SCHOOL, our word is SPACIOUSNESS. (Ah! The secret “S” word I wouldn’t give away last time!) I preached about it here in the podcast, and now I’d like to practice what I preach, with you.

I’ve got ideas for upcoming Spaciousness Sessions, but they’re still marinating. I’m picturing occasions for us to lose track of time together. We’ll make things, and let our projects take as long as they take. Maybe we’ll chat. We might be quiet. It will be expansive and delicious. It could be in person, or online.

I’d like to have one around the winter solstice, if not sooner.

Maybe Spaciousness Sessions will occur on a regular basis, not just in December. I’ll think about it, give it some space to become what it wants to be. We’ll see.

For now I just want to enjoy being off the Sales-y Train. That feels extra spacious to me right now.

How Do YOU Picture Spaciousness?

I’d love to hear what feels spacious in your life. When you need spaciousness, where do you go, either internally, or physically? Where do you feel most expansive and free? What does spaciousness look like to you? And yes, I’m addressing the following request to YOU:

** Would you be so kind as to send me a photo of your version of spaciousness?**

Thank you in advance for participating. You’re a part of this community, you’re qualified, your ideas are worthy.

My wish for you this season is — naturally — that you will find moments of spaciousness to refresh your spirit and restore your soul.

Warmly,
Pam