For a long time, I didn’t consider myself a creative person. That awe-inspiring label was reserved for those possessing talent, confidence and courage that I simply didn’t see in myself.

My perception changed four years ago after seeing a film that moved me to my core. I became so caught up in the emotions stirred in me that a parallel story began developing in my thinking. It seemed to follow me everywhere and continued to grow. I saw the characters in my imagination, heard their conversations and witnessed scenes unfolding in my mind. I just had to find a way to tell that story; it wouldn’t let me go.

Finally, I decided that I would write the story in order to get it out of my head. Yet, the only prose I’d written up to that point was some bad poetry and overly sentimental diaries that I ended up throwing out (I later regretted their loss).

In 2007, I sat down at my computer and began writing my story. Two years and 13 chapters later, it was finished. I found that, for me, the writing process can at times be hard, frustrating and exhausting, yet an utterly exhilarating experience. I discovered that the act of writing ignites a passionate and unprecedented connection with my inner self, and have been writing ever since. Now, ideas strike often, and I sometimes find myself digging in my purse for a stray receipt to jot them down.

At present, in addition to writing magazine articles, I am also in the middle of writing three books, which may not ever be published, but I keep plugging away because it just feels so darn good to write. Unleashing my creativity has allowed me to grow in ways I never imagined and gave me the courage to consider the opportunity of owning a Natural Awakenings magazine. Now I am embarked on an exciting career that I never in my wildest dreams believed could be my path.

I urge you to let yourself explore your own budding avenues of creativity and silence the inner judge that worries about what other people might think of your creations or whether society will consider them good enough to see the light of day.

Steve Jobs, who will be missed and whose passionate creativity literally changed the way we live, encouraged us all in his now-famous commencement speech at Stanford in 2005: “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”

 Here’s to unleashing everyone’s creativity!

 

Gabriella Buchnik, Publisher