To my muse...

This is the first post of many on blogger.com. I felt like the first article I write should be my reason. It's my greatest hope that this blog will be the haven of my deepest thoughts and public stage for creative processing.
That these articles with be a place of rest for my words and inspiration for anyone who reads them. This is my goal....right about now you should be saying to yourself, "Wow, this girls full of it if she's claiming this as her public stage to inspire me. The audacity. Only a published, award winning writer has that kind of confidence...and even then." But I am. I'm claiming every bit of the audacity above and this is how...  

Have you ever heard someone say, "He/she's a creative genius." This title is given to anyone that produces an outstanding original work, of any kind. If I compose a new song, write a new book, choreograph a new dance, I am a creative genius. And if I fail...I'm a moron. But creativity hasn't always been viewed in these terms of ownership.

Back in the day, medieval day, people credited Muses. Muses where the source of creative genius and when they visited a person, that person became the outlet of the Muses work. The Muse was the divine inspiration. If the work of a person sucked, they had a bad muse. If not, the muse was to be thanked. Our, "creative geniuses, " of today were only credited with sensitivity to hear the muse and follow the muse to the completion of the muses intention for a certain work. That was all. No pressure because it wasn't really them anyway.

My friend sent me a link a few months ago to a great podcast by Elizabeth Gilbert. I would attach it to this article but I don't know how. I just got a blog today, baby steps. Ms. Gilbert wrote the book, "Eat, Pray, Love," which I haven't read and have no intention of reading. In the podcast she talked about Muses and the pressure, if our culture could accept it, divine inspiration could take off the shoulders of our, "creative geniuses." She did not say this but implied it would also make room for even greater works, because everyone knows creativity doesn't thrive under pressure.

Discovering my muse has been my journey for over a year now. In my attempts at writing and I've had many, I've run into all kinds of set-backs, workaholism, laziness, burn out, writers block etc. All seem to stem from a common issue. Me. I can not sustain the pressure of producing and maintains great works. I've come to believe I was not meant to.

I am fortunate to already believe in the divine and the source of divinity for all inspiration. I have felt creative inspiration come over me, if only for brief moments when I look on a page and see that I could have never come up with the things I've written. This is how I know the idea of a muse is real. But I have only one muse and he has been so good to me. He has taken me over a year of self-discovery, mainly discovering what I am not, and showing me what I can be because of him. He is my creative genius and this is why I dedicate this blog to him, with all of my inspired gratitude. I am thankful for whatever good thing may come out of all my writings and I know it is possible that very great things may come. Now writing has become the skill of listening. I can finally enjoy my work and boast in what I can't accomplish on my own and appreciate without jealously everything my muse is doing through anyone listening to him. Not only has he become the way I work, he is the reason I work. It is a great feeling. I mean it is a really really great feeling and I am only at the beginning of appreciation.

I know there are many, "gifted" people reading this blog. Don't ever give up doing what the muse has sent you to do. You CAN'T do it, so stop worrying :) He can. I will be one of the many waiting to see what he does through you. I will be one of the few knowing the source of your genius. Just remember, the greatness of the finished work is meant to be a reflection of how you got there. And I think that's all I have to say about that for today...

With Gratitude,

Brianna