Finding a way of creative restoration

And some painting secrets, too

Something I have been slowly learning how to navigate is the balance of being present on the internet, creating in spaces like this for example, and present in my material life.

Of course, I can’t consider my presence on the Internet as separate from my life, although sometimes I would like to! It is all included. But I have to admit that it’s a different kind of presence and one that often takes more energy than it gives.

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At the beginning of last week I found myself in that familiar place of feeling depleted, at the trailhead of burnout. Instead of continuing to push and do it all or pause it all, I chose to take the middle way.

The curious thing about the middle way, and many Buddhist expressions, is that they are not a prescriptive; they are descriptive. The middle way constantly changes, adjusts, adapts, to meet each moment.

From a place of burnout, it can feel like my entire todo list is of equal priority, but that is rarely true. In order to identify where the depletion was coming from, I started taking notes after completing each task on the list - and whether I felt energized, neutral, or depleted.

The results were surprisingly simple. In each case digital tasks were depleting, and material presence was restorative. 🌱

My days felt off balance because I was spending more time in the digital realm than the material. This was affecting my sleep, my focus, my body, my thoughts, my diet, and especially my painting in the studio.

Once I mapped this out and saw it clearly, it became much easier to cut out the digital fluff. I gave myself a goal of spending no more than 33% of the work day on screens. This proved to be enough for emails, customer service, admin, and I even managed to make steady progress on my website refresh. I was amazed. The limitations seemed to invite more clarity and focus.

This week I haven’t achieved my 33% goal, and that is okay. But I have been more aware of taking breaks, balancing studio and screen time, and identifying parts of the process that are taking more energy than they are giving.

What is most important for me right now, as I find new and restorative ways of creating, is establishing a seasonal rhythm of work, community, and life that is healthy and sustainable. Balancing work and rest, community and alone time, creation and contemplation.

So, that is where I am today, and how about you? Are you also finding that “balance” in modern life can be rather complex?

With love,

Jess

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✏️ Ps. You can find more daily flower painting are on Studio’s ig and garden bits on Coco’s ig