14: outside of our heads

Dear Friend,

Do you ever talk to yourself out loud? Nothing rehearsed, just spontaneous statements or questions to no one in particular, like, “Where are my keys?” Or, “Oh, the wild mustard is blooming.” Or, “I should buy vacuum bags.” Or, “Now, there’s another reason I should adopt a dog.”

It isn’t a bad thing to talk to ourselves out loud, in fact, psychologists today call it ‘self-talk,’ and say that it helps us problem-solve and is a healthy part of creativity especially if we steer clear of unnecessary negativity. Obviously, we might use self-talk to make corrections in our own behaviors, but if self-deprecation becomes a habit, it isn’t helpful for anyone. That’s why it’s so awesome that when you look in the mirror, your first impulse is to say, “Aww, I’m so cute!”

Ever since we were born, we’ve been thinking, and some of that thinking has been done outside of our heads, a language of babbling and then words, and a lot of our first communications were straight from our imaginations.

When we were little, it wasn’t usually a big deal to share imaginative ideas with our peers. But, we’re older now, and some of us are more inhibited than others.

Have you ever been at a meeting where everyone is expected to brainstorm, to blurt out ideas, and at first, some people are timid, maybe they are shy about divulging their thoughts for fear of rejection. But, as the ideas start flowing, it becomes abundantly clear that there are no bad ideas and soon everyone is freely participating and, Ta Da! all of the world’s problems are solved in one afternoon. Well, at least, maybe some issues have been addressed. The main thing is that trust was built as imaginative ideas were shared and respected, and from that day on, there was, hopefully, more motivation to problem-solve as a creative team.

What motivates you to create? A well-stocked kitchen? A freshly-tilled garden? A blank canvas? What about an empty doll house? You may remember this fun little song / video about a doll house: “Doll House, Sesame Street, 1970.”

(I really like the little song but just so you know, in my opinion, doll houses are not just for girls and cats). Have you ever had a doll house? If you have, you know that there is a lot of potential for everyone to create around such a structure. The building can be inhabited by any sort of creature(s), whatever comes to mind or crawls out of your imagination …

And a doll house is a wonderful creative outlet. There are countless ways to create miniatures, plants, furniture, workshop tools, linens, tiny household items of all kinds, etc. Here is a video that describes How to turn trash plastic into kitchen items.

Another great thing about doll houses is that your make-believe stories about the dwelling and its occupants can be completely different every single day, it’s up to you. As you know, there really aren’t any rules.

Frank photographed several spaces within a doll house owned by our dear friend, Lisa. She and her Dad built the little house over 50 years ago. Her doll house (and her diverse collection of miniatures) is ever-evolving. We enjoy her creations very much and are grateful that she's happy to share her imaginative world with all of us!

Thank you for being here to read Tracks by the Post. When you have time, please write to share your thoughts about thinking out loud (smile) and just to let us know how things are going, we enjoy hearing from you!

Wishing you happy, freely-creative days in your busy world this week!

Gently Be,

Leslie and Frank