A Cluttered Mind

I find that the busier I am, the more creative I become. In the past few years, with the distraction and tiredness that comes of having children, this hasn't seemed as true as it once was, but I do believe it may become true again. There is a busyness that leads to a sense of true accomplishment and expands your mind and then there is the busyness of checking off the daily to do list: cleaning the house, laundry, dishes, groceries, dinners. Although these are indeed accomplishments, they don't feel like achievements because the next week, day or hour, one must perform these tasks again. And with little children about, it doesn't take long for the work of cleaning to be undone.

The latter busyness therefore is not intellectually stimulating, but the former can be. The act of writing, in and of itself, stimulates the mind and brings back my latent vocabulary and thought processes. Ideas that have long lain dormant, begin to stir, like nature awakens in the spring. Even the simple act of cleaning up a garden bed and planting annuals - although it will have to be done again next year and maintained throughout the summer - produces a result that I can enjoy and look at and say "I did this and it is done".

A mind full of ideas and inspiration could be considered cluttered by some I suppose, however I consider clutter to be stuff that takes up space without contributing to the atmosphere. I don't like clutter. Clutter is piles of paperwork waiting to be sorted, mail that needs to be opened and dealt with, useless knick knacks that add nothing to the decor. It is countertops strewn with the detritus of daily life.

A cluttered mind likewise is filled with to do lists, things to remember, trivia and anxieties all detracting from any real progress. It can be difficult to clear away such clutter and achieve any true progress towards creativity especially when out of practice. But it is important to try to maintain some discipline toward this end.

I am hoping that this blog will be one such tool for freeing my thoughts of clutter. I plan to cast off the fetters of busyness awaken my thoughts once more.

The Pause that Refreshes

I didn't start drinking coffee or tea until relatively late in life. I just never acquired a taste for either. If I ever did have either, it was always with a LOT of sugar, which had a tendency to set my teeth on edge. My first foray into the realm of coffee drinkers was in Australia. It was mostly instant coffee with lots of cream and sugar. It didn't stick. In fact, I didn't start drinking coffee in earnest until Europe but even then it started with tea.

In the Czech Republic we had tea with milk, the British way. It was a social activity and I enjoyed that aspect, if not the actual beverage. In the Ukraine, with milk being less available, tea is taken very sweet - two tablespoons of sugar - with a slice of lemon. Once the tea is consumed, you sprinkle sugar on the lemon slice and eat it. My roommate in the Ukraine was American so she loved coffee. When we had the opportunity to get milk, she would brew a large amount in her French Press. She preferred it with a large scoop of cinnamon mixed in the grounds. I could never get used to the strong cinnamon flavor mixed with milk.

Finally, I went to England where I finally began to truly enjoy tea, strong with lots of milk. It took me forever to brew it to the specifications of my friends. I omitted the sugar and realized it was quite good. Coincidentally, I discovered that sugar was also what put me off liking coffee. Quite by accident, and my tendency to let others make decisions for me, I was served a cup of coffee with cream only. Eureka! It was palatable.


Now, I have never been and will most likely not be someone who can drink large amounts of coffee. More than two cups in one day leaves me jittery and dehydrated. But as the years have passed, I find I really enjoy the social aspect of tea and coffee. You visit with someone and sip a nice cuppa tea or a perky coffee.

These days, with two young children, I find I look forward to that first cup of coffee. But I think the caffeine is secondary. I gave up coffee in my pregnancies for the most part. But there is something nice about that routine that sets off the day. It is symbolic of getting my mind set for another day. I also genuinely like the taste.

And now, I find that I want a cup of coffee in the afternoon. Yes, I am tired and drooping and wondering how I will make it until my husband gets home and we can have dinner and get the kids to sleep. But more than that, as I brew that cup, I find I want to sit down and have a chat with a friend. I am longing for that social connection once more. Often I get that at friend's houses throughout the week, and yet I would love for it daily.

So, here is my blog. A chance for me to be virtually social. It will never replace sitting face to face and talking with a friend. It won't even pretend to win me friends. No one may ever read this. I don't care. I just find I like writing again and this is a chance to do that.