“Hindsight is a wonderful thing but foresight is better”, wrote the poet, William Blake.
What if that is not always true? If we had foresight would we chose to plunge headlong into the unknown, the delicious anticipation, danger even of adventure?
Hindsight is the understanding of an event after it has occurred, the long view of how all the dots connect together. What led you here then led you to do this. But If we keep looking forward and always planning, we can lose the spontaneity of action.
Here are some thoughts on what happened this week.
Getting over oneself
I took a spontaneous road-trip to see my friends’ art exhibition 200 kms away and was invited to stay the night with an artist I had only ever met online. In hindsight I can see that going on an adventure allowed me to “get over myself”. It restored my sense of purpose, lifting me out of my recent illness into renewed joy by connections with people, art and the wider world. It broadened my perspective.
Say yes (and meaning it)
Saying yes to small (and big) adventures feels daring. And yet the greatest danger I’ve found, is not in the adventure itself, but in surrendering to the unknown and learning to trust the process. The car could have broken down, I may have had to turn around and drive a 600 kms round trip home in one day. But none of these things happened. Embracing the unknown was easy once I took the first step.
Finding Purpose
I’ve finally finished reading,, Phosphorescence . One of the last chapters is called Ert, or a Sense of Purpose. When I looked this word up in the dictionary I found the closest I could come to its origin was from the Old Icelandic – ert from the verb are, or to be. Which in many ways encapsulates living in the present, finding joy and meaning in life. Purposeful work through creative practice is my ‘ert’. It keeps me going no matter what.
Sustainable Practice
I am reminded of another book, Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction where there is a chapter on building houses to accommodate the changing stages of life, from birth to old age. It advocates designing spaces for creative pursuits which can sustain you as you transition into older age. Reconnecting with my own creative space and daily artworks gave me permission to say yes to myself.
Integration and community
Art cannot exist in a vacuum. It will always require context; place, time, thoughts, activities, beliefs. For me, art is a vehicle to advocate for change, to give voice to stories, to embed a sense of connection and community through creative acts. Keeping curiosity alive is an artful practice. In hindsight it’s about connecting all the dots to see how your journey returns you to who you are, your ‘ert.’
My Studio space. Designed for creating…