105. Creativity Means Creation

To be creative is to make something new. An idea forms in your imagination and then develops into a vision of a something real and tangible. You intuitively follow your vision, giving it structure and life. What was once imaginary becomes a real entity in the world.

The most familiar form of creative action is the making of artworks — paintings, songs, films, performances, stories, and so on. But creativity is present in all of our practices, regardless of whether we are baking bread, playing a sport, building a house, or simply choosing what to wear. Creativity is never limited to those who call themselves artists or to any one area of experience or expertise. It can exist everywhere and anywhere we can imagine, and it is open to all of life.

Creativity means creation, and to create is to build and grow. It is to fill the gaps we see in the world, to bridge the seemingly irreconcilable parts of our existence into a new whole. It is to add to the mosaic of the world, to make it more complete and harmonious. It is to clear the ground of obstacles, to remove whatever hinders life and its growth. It is to create flow where there is presently only stagnation.

It is this new flow that allows even more creativity to surge forward. For then it becomes possible to create something that travels further than we have ever gone before. What we take as the pinnacle of creative achievement today soon becomes the material and support for tomorrow’s creations.

Creativity advances our understanding of the world and ourselves. Through it, we create the awareness that allows us to break free of strife and suffering towards a more caring and compassionate way of life. It is by embracing creativity in every aspect of our lives that we offer ourselves the chance to discover purpose, meaning, and joy in everything we do.