creative life

I Won’t Argue My “She Shed.” Living a Meaningful and Creative Life.

Posted by Barbara Techel
I Won't Argue My "She Shed." Living a Meaningful and Creative Life.
Barbara Techel’s writing cottage. joyfulpaws.com

Last week I was tagged in a few posts of highly visible Facebook pages that featured my “She Shed” which many of you know is really what I call my writing cottage. It seems that the video piece done by CBS 5 out of Milwaukee, done last June, has gone viral.

She Shed is the term someone came up with and the media has taken off with it. As I’ve written before, it’s not a term I really care for – but it’s the idea that I support.

With high visibility comes snarky comments from others such as “It’s too cluttered,” “I couldn’t live in something that small,” and comments that it’s a waste of money and will soon be abandoned.

I found myself wanting to argue the point of why I feel so blessed to have this space of my own. But after giving it careful thought, I refrained. To be fair, there were many lovely comments, too. But it seems many didn’t take the time to read the story and watch the video as they would have realized what it is truly all about.

But I don’t have to prove anything to those that have something negative to say. This is my life and how I choose to live it. If someone does not agree with it, well, that is their choice.

But in a world of “viral” and many behind the screen of a computer, it’s easy to fire off comments without thinking and ones that can hurt. But then I realized I have a choice as to how I deal with them. I don’t need to.

I have so many other ways in which to use my energy in a positive way. And exactly why I’m honored to have this space of my own where I spend many days writing, sharing my love of animals and my quest for living a simple, creative, and meaningful life.

If my thoughts written in my books and on my blog encourage others to follow their hearts, well then I’m living to my full potential as that is one of my greatest rewards when this happens.

My life (or this space where I work and create) isn’t an argument. It’s one in which I make the choices that are right for me. And it’s one that most days I end with a happy and fulfilling heart. It’s my hope that other’s can do the same and find what matters most to them.

And exactly why I am excited to know that my “She Shed” has gone viral — as it is my hope that it will inspire more women to listen to their own inner voices and follow what will make their hearts most happy.

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What Makes For a Creative Life?

Posted by Barbara Techel

What Makes for a Creative Life?

Yesterday I helped John load and unload two trailer’s full of wood for our woodstove which we burn during the winter months. We have a furnace, but enjoy trying to be more self-sufficient when we can. Besides the ambiance of a woodburning stove is so soothing to one’s soul.

But as we loaded and unloaded the wood I was fascinated by some of the shapes of the pieces, such as this one above. It’s an an art statement just as it is.

It had me wondering what it is that makes a creative life. I always used to closely associate it with what medium we may work with or try out such as writing, painting, drawing, or sculpting to name just a few.

When I think about my life, so much of it is creative in the way that we make choices for what works for John and I. Neither of us work in the corporate world having left there over 20-years ago. John with his own construction business which lends itself often to his own sense of creativity, and me with my writing, animal advocacy, and SoulCollage® workshops I teach.

But it’s more than that really. To see life as one big creative playground no matter what you are doing.

Like yesterday setting out with John to travel about 20 minutes on a sunny Sunday morning to get the wood. Feeling blessed to have the life I do with John who is so good to me and makes me happy.

Working with our hands, throwing the pieces into the trailer, being out in nature listening to the birds, feeling the wind in our faces and the sun on our backs.

Seeing the beauty in each piece of wood, imagining how it started out as a seedling and grew into a magnificent tree, then chopped down for many different purposes.

Creativity is all around me at all times. It’s in the way I plan our meals, decorate our house, hang out with my dogs, talk with John, go for walks, practice yoga, and meditate. This is, in part, what makes my life feel so creative.

It’s about being open to how we see the world through our own eyes and feel into it into the depth of our hearts. It’s about making the conscious choice of staying in awareness of this thing called life and accepting all that we can see, but also the mystery of it, too.

It’s about following your hearts calling even when times feel tough. It’s making it work despite the odds stacked against you at times. It’s really, to me, about listening to the inner truth that is there if you wish to hear it.

And I think it really is about pausing often, listening to that inner realm, and capturing what it is that matters most to you… and then living from that place within that makes your heart sing.

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