Inspiration

Ava is on spring break, so we enjoyed a leisurely pace to our day yesterday. It was pure bliss not to race out of the house for 8:30 am. I could nurse a second cup of coffee and read my book while the kids played with their new birthday toys. Around noon we all got dressed and I decided spur-of-the-moment to take the kids to see How to Train your Dragon.

I am not a person who does spontaneous things. Generally my days and weeks are planned to the letter. This organization is soothing to me and helps to minimize chaos. In general, I like knowing what is coming, but once in a while it is like a fresh breath of air to do something fun without any plan or forethought.

I said to the kids, "Let's go see a movie to celebrate Ava being on spring break." Their eyes were as wide as saucers at the idea. We got to the theatre, ordered popcorn and a drink, stayed in the lobby to avoid the "scary" previews as William has a horror of being trapped in the theatre when something frightening is advertised, and then crawled in to find seats when the movie began.

I sat between my kids, watching them enjoy the experience. Ava at 7 is so fun because she's starting to get more of the jokes and situations. She leaned over in the first 5 minutes and said, "This is going to be a great movie, I can just tell." Her joy and enthusiasm was contagious. Then there was William, quoting back all of the lines he liked in his only mode of communication (read: loud and piercing) while I whispered, "Yeah, that's right, now shush!"

Before the dragon enters the story, my kids were captivated, but my attention wandered. I found myself thinking of my to-do list, and allowing my mind to go wherever it wanted. Suddenly I had an idea for a children's book I could write for Ava and a similar idea to create one for William. Inspiration is a marvelous thing - it comes when we aren't expecting it, and settles in around us so quietly that we miss it if we aren't paying attention.

I wonder if I had inspiration for writing for all of my life, but I didn't pay close enough attention to record it, or if it's a new thing for me. I'm ticked that I wasted many years of not being open to new creative impulses. There is no sense dwelling on time that is gone; I'm better off moving forward and trying to grab hold of any new ideas that float down from heaven toward me. I don't want to miss them. It's fun to have a book to record these ideas in, and when I have time, return to explore them further.

Inspiration is around all of us on a daily basis, but it's important to allow unstructured room in our lives to quiet our minds in order to receive it. Look for it. Attune yourself to its whisper. Inspiration gives meaning and shape to our lives; filling our canvas with vibrant colour instead of shades of grey. I encourage you to look around today, at all of the beauty in the world, and find what inspires you.