Posted in Living Life Well

This Week’s Theme in Artist’s Way

Posted on by Laura Kate

The author titles Week 5 “Recovering a sense of possibility.” This chapter presents some hard questions that have me examining the ways that I put myself second and my family members first – something that I had accepted as necessary and virtuous. I learned today that this behavior can be a trap. But then, moving on from self-sacrificial actions, the Way gives me exercises to explore what I would and could do if it weren’t too selfish a thing.

The exercise, Forbidden Joys, asked me to list things that I would love to do, if I were allowed to do them. When I completed my ten things, I felt – exhilarated. Writing the list down made me smile. Reading it afterward warmed my heart. The theory is that writing about one’s forbidden joys breaks down the barrier to doing them.

Next, the Way tells me to post my list somewhere highly visible. Awwww! do I dare? After all they are Forbidden.

In the spirit of the Artist’s Way, what follows are ten things that I would love to do if they were allowed. To provide a full experience, I chose photographs illustrating my forbidden things. Half are my own photographs and half come from internet sites.

  1. Swim naked.

2. Climb onto a roof to watch the sun set.

3. Run up and down the stairs.

4. Eat chocolate cake once a week.

5. Interrupt someone who is speaking – especially when they are boring or pompous.

6. When travelling, stay the night at the finest hotel in town.

7. Have breakfast for dinner, or dinner for breakfast.

8. Take out the carpet in my studio and paint the concrete floor.

9. Pet every dog that I meet.

10. Hug every toddler that I meet.

There, that wasn’t so bad. I hope you tolerated my self-indulgence in revealing these forbidden joys. If you liked reading mine, perhaps you should try to make this list for yourself. You might just be convinced to actually do one of them.

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Author:

One of six children, I was raised by a busy mom, who instilled in me a love of fabric. Though I learned to sew and knit at a young age, it was the arrival of my first grandchild that pushed me into action. A long-time knitter, I am now ready to explore all things fiber.

11 thoughts on “This Week’s Theme in Artist’s Way”

  1. I have this book too and I believe it was what helped me to carve out one day per week for my art practice. My family knows not to bother me on that day and it has been a game changer. As mothers, wives, caregivers we do tend to put others before ourselves, however, if we don’t fill ourselves up in some way, we will have nothing to give to others.

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  2. I love that you are doing this. I first read The Artist’s Way way back when it first came out. An artist friend in San Francisco who I was staying with suggested that I read.it….I loved it and have recommended it a thousand times. By the way keep going….jumping out of one’s comfort zone is so important and skinny dipping (swimming naked ) is fabulous:)x

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  5. I love this! I hope you can make small forays into doing forbidden things. Chocolate cake once a week? Sounds totally reasonable to me. I started The Artists Way back when my kids were still at home. It was not the right time. Maybe I should take another look at it.

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  6. I’m a little surprised you haven’t done some of those things somewhere along the way. Wishing you good times doing the things on the list. Start with the chocolate cake and be a true rebel and eat it for breakfast or as the first course of your main meal.

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