Small Daily Wonders of Nature Exercise
from upcoming book Creative Awakening: Journal and Workbook
Who says expressing your creativity must take hours? This drawing exercise is for anyone at any level. Plus, you will imbue your day with appreciation for the beauty just under your feet.
Stop, look down, pick up.
People often lament about not having time for creativity. Of course, they know it makes them happy, settles their nervous system, and calms their mind, but they often complain of being too tired after the end of the day to even bother with it. And so, yet another day goes by without expressing their creativity.
I accidentally stumbled upon a new morning routine for myself that has become incredibly pleasurable. This routine would be perfect for beginners or anyone who want to create but have little time to do so. You don't even need to have drawing experience. And it doesn't take a lot of time. I call it my "daily wonders of nature" exercise.
It all started because I've been interested in the dip pen and ink lately, and I'd been on the lookout for quick things to sketch as practice. On this day, I stopped, looked down, and picked up the first thing that was simple and caught my eye - a green pod. It was so simple and beautiful.
I took it home, sketched it out with a pen, added some color, and finished in 15 minutes. My tiny wonder of nature for the day! Now, this has become my morning ritual before my workday. If I have time, I'll drop in some watercolor or colored pencils to the sketch. If not, I'll add color at the end of the day as a reward for myself.
I notice a variety of reasons something might call out for me to pick it up; it might be the flower's design, the calligraphy of the stick, the seeds inside a pod that catch the light.
I try and be as loose as I can and just notice every detail. I keep my eye more on the object than what I'm sketching on the paper. The whole thing takes no more than 15 minutes. I'm not going for perfection, only noticing nature and practicing with my pen.
I've accumulated quite a few now. Some are loose and sloppy as I learn to use the dip pen, but all are little artistic gems. The happy by-product is that I am continuously more curious at the miraculous features of nature and how unique each tiny offering is from the other.
The other by-product of this exercise is that it drops you into
A MOMENT OF BEING PRESENT. Within minutes of noticing a leaf with its delicate veins, the variety of hues in green, and the shadow under it, you drop into the now. Simply by observing the natural world and attempting to capture it with your hand.
A client of mine with high anxiety levels recently started this practice and has reported an increased calm and serenity in her life. She also said she is constantly looking for interesting and beautiful objects of nature, which keeps her mind off her uncomfortable thoughts and onto this wondrous world. The power of becoming focused on the present is that it takes your mind off whatever stress you're having with the world - and it forces you to remember who you are and to be present in the now.
As often happens, what started as a curiosity of mine has turned into a happy daily obsession. I'm collecting quite an assortment of my wonders of nature, which can later be attached to a blank card for a gift card.
If you're interested, here are some steps for your own "daily wonders of nature" exercise.
Materials:
Step outside.
Stop and look down and around your feet.
Notice what appeals to, makes you cock your head, what you find interesting.
i.e., A stick that has attractive curves, a pod with a shiny seed poking out, a leaf with interesting veins or stem, a flower beginning to wilt, a smooth, colored rock - anything that lights you up.
Pick it up and go to your desk. Set it down on white paper at an angle you find appealing, preferably with a light on it from the window or a lamp.
As you sketch it out with a pen or pencil, spend more time looking at the object than looking at your paper. We are not going for perfection here - we are going for observation.
Become the object. Feel its curves as you follow its lines with your pen.
When the ink is dry, and if you have time, add watercolors or colored pencils to your drawing. If not, add it later.
Add the shadows under the object with a light wash. It helps to ground the object on the page.
Like me, you may want to make a collection of these little wonders in your journal or draw boxes on a large page and then add the nature delights as you go. You could also glue them on a blank card as a gift card for someone special.
It doesn't take much time to appreciate a tiny miracle of nature each morning while you practice your observational drawing skills. You will also begin your day calm, appreciative, happy, and focused.