Dreams

To every thing, turn, turn, turn..
There is a season turn, turn, turn..
And a time for every purpose under heaven

I love this quote, because it so perfectly sums up something I have been realizing since my son was born. That there is a time for all of our dreams, but they need to find their season. Or as my friend Mythra once told me when I was complaining about all the things I wanted to do but didn't have time for "You can do it all Joyelle, you just can't do it all right now."

Every mom that I know struggles with this issue of balance. We all have competing priorities and a need for "me" time. But none so much as the creative mom. Because we need the alone time to recharge, and then more time to create. And there is only so much time in the day. For example, I am typing this blog while my son is in his Tumbletots class. Later I have to try to convince him to take a nap so I can rehearse for a gig I have Wednesday. And I have a huge pile of laundry waiting for me at home.

Recently I made a vow to stop getting upset about the house being messy. I decided it was more important for me to have fun with my son and make music and art than to have a clean house. Sounds simple, but it was a big deal for me to let go of that one. And that's what it boils down to. Letting go of the dream of doing it all and accepting the reality that we all have limitations. It means not comparing yourself to someone else who seems to be doing it all, or doing it all better than you. It means constantly checking in with yourself before committing to something new to ask yourself if this is really something you can add to your schedule or not. And for me it means when I look at all the creative retreats I wish I had the time and money to attend, or the song I wish I had more time or energy to work on recording, and letting go. I guess it requires a faith that one day that dream will come to fruition.

And on that note, here is the art piece I made called Turn, Turn, Turn. This piece is part of my New Year's Resolution commitment to drag out all the unfinished art projects I have lying around the house and finish them. This has been an amazing lesson for me in creativity. It began with a scarf I had started 6 years ago and never finished. My hope is that it will culminate in the completion of my EP by the end of the year. But if yet again, this project takes longer than planned, I just need to try to have faith that its season too will come.