May: Create Anyway
“Both motherhood and creativity have taught me to be brave, to relentlessly seek beauty and joy among the mundane, to notice the remarkable grace flooding my unremarkable life.”
When Steph Smith recently complimented the “defiance” of my book title, I had to do a double take. Me? Defiant?
True story: one night at a sleepover, when I was probably around 10 years old, I completely panicked when the mom busted out a Jurassic Park VHS tape. I knew the movie was rated PG-13 and I was not allowed to see PG-13 movies. I very calmly explained the predicament to my friend’s mother, probably as slyly as possible to avoid embarrassment, and promptly asked if I could call my parents to either a) grant me permission to watch the film, or b) come pick up ASAP while my friends continued their night of debauchery.
I do not remember how that mom reacted to my request if she was amused or impressed or slightly horrified, but either way—she handed me the landline phone, connected to the wall in the kitchen, and let me make the phone call.
I seem to recall my mom laughing in response.
Yes, honey. You can watch Jurassic Park. Thanks for letting us know.
(PHEW. Crisis averted.)
I wouldn’t describe myself as defiant, is what I’m trying to say. My goody-two-shoes personality feels a tinge of anxiety at the mere word. And yet—one of the actual definitions for defiance is “a willingness to contend or fight.”
Isn’t that what creativity demands of us sometimes? Wouldn’t it be terribly easy to be swallowed up by the fear, the doubt, the insecurity, the imposter syndrome? The distractions are endless. We have no time, no space, no margin.
And perhaps this is where the defiance comes in.
The willingness to contend, to fight, to … create anyway.
This month, write about what it means to create anyway. Write a vivid scene of what creating in the margins actually feels like. Write an op-ed exploring the (false) narrative that mothers cannot be real artists. Write a poem, a manifesto, a rallying cry you can re-read on the days when you’re tempted to give up. Bonus points and gold stars if you can infuse a tiny bit of rebellion into your piece.
***
Submit your URL here.
Posts are due at midnight PST on Wednesday, May 24th . Neidy will email participants on Thursday, May 25th. The blog hop will go live at 8 AM EST on Friday, May 26th.
Need some help getting started? Here’s Blog Hop 101.
Questions? Email hello@exhalecreativity.com.
Visit the Blog Hop:
Created to Create
On Dirt and Worms
Inspiration for the “tired as a mother”
Like the Wildflowers
For the Sake of Joy
pour my soul out
Creating Within Motherhood: A Demonstration of Love
a wrestle with words
Finding Creativity
Is that more water? Writing with Littles
Mother's Block
Why Crayons Are Weapons and How to Wield Them Well
Perfectionism is a Brawler
I can be all of me
When You Wonder What It's All For
For the love of art
Second best life
For the ambitious Christian mama feeling aimless
In Defense of the Kid-Led Household
Fractured Writing
Creative a Creative Legacy
Two Truths and a Lie
I am a Writer
What’s Next
Granting Myself Permission to Write
A Mother Fully Alive
Making Space
Where all great stories begin
Making Metaphors
