Teapot Tuesday #3: Slowing down and Enduring
Week 2 check-in on the artist's way journey and running our race
Tonight, I’ve poured myself a cup of Echinacea tea with a note on the sachet that reads, “there is pleasure in the pathless woods.”
Here’s what else I’ve got to pour from the week.
On life…
It was 2:36pm on Sunday when I was waiting to board my flight back home to Michigan. I decided to clean my email inbox and saw I received one of Elizabeth Gilbert’s newsletters Letter’s From Love. I opened the email and began reading the letter she wrote to herself.
It begins like this:
“Slow down, little firefly. Just please, a tiny bit, please do yourself a favor and slow down.
It’s okay every once in a while not to accomplish all the things. Don’t make accomplishment into your God.”
“You are not being graded on your life, dear child. There is no hall monitor. You are not required to show your work. You are not required to provide a list at the end of each day with each item neatly checked off — although I know that’s a thrill for you, when it does happen. But it’s a small thrill, and a passing one. Your desire to get everything done and to make everyone happy and to earn a good grade while you’re at it is what your friend Tererai Trent might call “Little Hungers.” Your Little Hungers, she taught you, are your urges for immediate gratification and validation, your passing wants and petty cravings. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with your Little Hungers (they are part of life) but they will never satisfy you. If anything, they will take you off your true path.”
You can read the rest of her letter here.
I was heading home from the Woman Evolve conference in Arlington, Texas. It’s a conference all about empowering woman to step into their God-given purpose and fulfill their God-given calling. It was a fiery and rowdy time. There was a warrior-cry that erupted in that stadium. We held hands and declared our victory over every obstacle, battle, and hindrance that has kept us from giving life our YES. We got our minds right.
The final session of the conference ended with this statement:
Bring it on home.
I left full of passion and power to accomplish all of my goals and dreams. I felt a fresh wind behind me to run my race.
That Sunday before my flight, I visited a church in Dallas and interestingly enough, the topic of the message was endurance. This race that God has set before us is not for the faint-of-heart. It requires all of us (as in all of who we are). And when all of us is not enough, we need God to endure and keep running. Endurance can be defined as cheerful constancy, or patient continuance.
“We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.” -Hebrews 12:2
And then, Elizabeth Gilbert’s letter, like a note sent straight from heaven, reminded me “Don’t make accomplishment into your God.”
My encouragement is this, keep showing up. Run your race. And remember to take breaks. Stop for a moment and breathe. It’s okay to pause. And when you’re tired or weary, ask for help. You are not your accomplishments. Nor are you defined by the speed at which you achieve anything. Your worth is innate, and God is your source. Keep your eyes on Jesus and you will finish well. There’s no need to hurry.
On writing…
The goal of the second week of the artist’s way is to recover a sense of identity as an artist. The reading and assignments are centered around taking inventory of our time, our resources, how we’re spending them and who we’re spending them on.
Here’s my weekly check-in.
Daily morning pages: 5/7 days
Weekly artist date: no
Week 2 tasks: 0/3 completed
Weekly reading: yes
I don’t have much to report from this week because I did not plan a n y t h i n g. With the conference, I am giving myself grace for my failure to plan and complete any of the tasks outside of the morning pages. What I can share is that I’ve noticed a shift within myself. A new confidence and audaciousness is being birthed even in my intention to take myself seriously as an artist.
To be honest though, this is hard. My commitment to this journey, even in its slow and messy beginning, is showing me the degree to which my life is set up to quench the very thing I’m trying to revive. My creativity has lived in the shadows for so many years that even when it pokes its head, it’s not long before it’s back in the dark.
I decided to purchase the book after listening on audio, and I believe this will help me stay on top of my weekly tasks moving forward.
Here’s to showing up.
Thanks for sharing a cup of tea with me. I hope you’re leaving filled. See you next week.
Here’s a concept that was recently shared with me regarding consistency. As I’ve been un-learning perfectionism, I have been discovering this more and more.