Create!

While shopping at the local Dollar Tree store, I spotted the mug that is now in the photo shown here. I liked its message ("Live life in full bloom") and the delicate flowers surrounding it. I bought it, along with a packet of small styrofoam blocks and a handful of assorted silk flowers. 

As I arranged the flowers (and then photographed my creation), I thought, This is so much fun--and so relaxing. Indeed, whether I’m arranging flowers, rearranging decorative items on a table, photographing various subjects, experimenting with a new recipe, designing greeting cards in Canva, writing, etc., I feel so content--and alive. That makes me wonder, Why don’t I exercise my God-given creativity more often?

If that’s true of you, let’s make sure we do at least one creative thing every day. Since we are made in the image of God,* who is the awesome Creator, we’ve been endowed with the desire and the ability to create. Let’s exercise that gift! Doing so can be done on a shoestring budget—or even for free! Therefore, we have no excuse for not creating, do we?

*Genesis 1:27

Points of Joy

While walking on my driveway a few months after my husband passed away, I noticed how beautifully the early morning light was falling on my house and on the small crepe myrtle bush blooming beside my driveway. I couldn't resist stopping three or four times to take photos with the camera on my cell phone. 

I thought, My senses are waking up like they do whenever I become sleepily aware of my surroundings after a sound sleep. Indeed, I felt more alert than I had in weeks.

As I savored those feelings, I recalled having heard a guest on a podcast say, "Don't set a goal of being happy. Happiness is an illusion. It comes and goes, depending on the circumstances. Instead, look for points of joy throughout your day. The more points of joy you experience, the happier you'll feel. To experience more points of joy, use your five senses." 

That's what I did as I continued my morning walk. Sure enough, I experienced points of joy as I felt the gentle breeze on my skin and heard the chirping of birds as they flew around the yard. 

I did this pointillism design
while chatting on the phone with a friend.
It won't ever win an award,
but it brought me joy as I created it.

I suddenly remembered watching a friend create a stunning portrait of Jesus by using a technique called pointillism. Using a felt tip pen, he'd dot-dot-dot the ink on paper. By strategically placing hundreds of small dots, he created the illusion of lines and shapes without actually drawing or painting them. 

Just as hundreds and hundreds of small dots can form a beautiful image on paper or canvas, many points of joy can create a happier life. Dot. Dot. Dot. Joy. Joy. Joy. Voila!

To learn more about pointillism and see how the "masters" did it, click here: 

https://puntillismo.org/en/pointillism-for-kids 

https://finearttutorials.com/guide/pointillism/

A Time to Build Sand Castles?

The air blowing in off of the Gulf of Mexico heightened my awareness of the surroundings. I wondered, Is the sky a brighter blue here than at home? I laughed as the playful wind gave me a new hairstyle. Though the sun beamed down upon my untanned skin, the cool breeze made me oblivious to the sunburn that was in progress.

As my younger daughter, Jena, and I walked along the wet sand at the edge of the water, I noticed that there were only a few sand castles. Since I had seen many families enjoying the sand and the surf, the scarcity of sand castles puzzled me.

When I commented on that, Jena responded, “Why bother to build sand castles? They’re going to get washed away.”

At first, I accepted the logic in her conclusion. Indeed, why waste time constructing something that won’t last 24 hours? Why not spend time doing something significant? Why invest our time and creativity in building sand castles when our energies are needed to solve the serious problems facing this world?

A voice inside me challenged those thoughts: “Lighten up. Not everything has to be ‘serious and stuffy.’ It’s perfectly okay to do something just for the sheer enjoyment of it.”

I pursued that line of thought. Those who build sandcastles do enjoy the sights and sounds of nature, but their pleasure is not the only benefit. For example, when builders are surrounded by noisy seagulls, brilliant sunshine, azure sky, gentle breezes, and wet sand, it’s easy to praise and thank the Creator.

Building sand castles builds relationships also. As sandy walls go up, emotional walls come down. Parent and child bond as they delight in working together on a simple project that allows each of them to use their creativity and skills. Even though the sand castle itself may be worthless and quickly washed away, the memories associated with it are priceless and last for a lifetime.

As the Old Testament writer says in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:

 There is a time for everything,

a season for every activity under heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die.

     A time to plant and a time to harvest…

A time to cry and a time to laugh.

     A time to grieve and a time to dance…

A time to tear and a time to mend.

     A time to be quiet and a time to speak up.

Perhaps he would also agree that there is a time to work and a time to play, a time to face responsibilities, and a time to build sandcastles. 

I took this photo in Sanibel in 2014, several years after I wrote the above message.

Peace Within

Note: I enjoy applying creative techniques to a photo I've taken. Afterward, I crop the photo into a square. Then I add a border and a quote or verse of Scripture. Sometimes I take the creative process a step further by printing the square on photo matte paper to create a folded greeting card. May this project bless you, Dear Reader!

Make Life Beautiful

In an article in the June 2013 issue of Southern Living magazine, writer Allison Glock talks about her great-grandfathers’ gardens, which were as different as the men themselves. One man’s garden was formal. The other’s was wild and free. Yet, each one was filled with beauty.

“In both houses,” Allison says, “there were jars of fresh flowers, blooms that reminded them that life could be beautiful, that they could make it so” (p. 78, “Portrait in Green”).

As I reflected on her words, I recalled the times I’ve visited (and photographed!) the garden of a humble, gentle-spirited man who lives in a small house. Like Allison’s great-grandfathers, this man has also surrounded himself with beauty.

He has planted flowers almost everywhere in his small yard. Other than a grassy pathway, which runs alongside his house and leads to his “sitting area” and to his small vegetable garden near the back fence, almost every available inch of his yard is ablaze with color.

In order to add a splash of color to the part of the yard that is more utilitarian than beautiful, he has hung a sunflower flag on a tree near a table covered with an assortment of unfilled flower pots.

He is happy to share the beauty of his garden with others. For example, when children in his neighborhood ask to be allowed to help him plant and weed and water, he teaches them to care for the plants and to appreciate their beauty, as he does.

Like Allison’s great-grandfathers, he believes life can be beautiful and that people can make it so.

They’re right, aren’t they? We can—and do—cultivate beauty in all kinds of spaces, whether in huge formal gardens surrounding a mansion or in limited space alongside a small house.

We also create beauty in all kinds of ways, not just in flower gardens. Consider: the chef who makes each entrée a work of art…the fashion designer who adds detail to a garment to make it uniquely beautiful…an interior designer who knows just what to put where in order to create a stunningly beautiful room.

Even folks who don’t get paid to create beauty do it instinctively. Take, for example, the person who creates beauty by artfully arranging assorted, chopped, colorful veggies…the man who washes and waxes his car until it looks brand new...the child who gathers a handful of wild flowers to present to her mother... the toddler who draws on a wall with a crayon…

Because we humans have an innate longing for beauty, we either find it—or create it!

Poets and writers use words to paint pictures for us to enjoy; photographers and artists create visual feasts. Even folks who don’t consider themselves artistic or creative, crave beauty and, thus, create it in all kinds of places and with whatever materials are at hand.

Even when life is hard—especially when life is hard—we have a need for beauty. We flank caskets with flowers to soften the harshness of death. We place flowers and balloon bouquets around the room of those who are ill. We dress in bright colors in order to lift our spirits.

Yes, life can be beautiful. And we should make it so! In the process, let’s also take time to thank our Father for the beauty He’s already provided for us, as Folliott S. Pierpoint did when, in 1864, he penned these words:

For the beauty of the earth,

For the glory of the skies,

For the love which from our birth,

Over and around us lies;

Christ our God to Thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise.

Increasingly Creative

For me, one of the most exciting things that happened during a day-long “water workshop” I attended was watching fellow camera club members become increasingly creative.


The two photography instructors had set up “stations” around the large room, each designed to provide a different kind of image. For example, one station had a glass baking dish half-filled with water to which a few drops of oil had been added. Underneath the dish was a multi-colored piece of fabric. All of that was sitting atop a light box, which lighted the dish from below. Other lights were strategically placed to illumine the sides.

After each student who photographed at that station gently stirred the water in order to move the drops of oil around, he or she began snapping images, varying the camera’s position and settings.

As the eleven of us worked, the instructors stayed nearby, offering guidance when needed.
As we experienced some measure of success at the various stations, we began to say, “I wonder what would happen if…” Soon students were working together, varying the lighting and the angles, changing out backgrounds and props, and so forth.

Because I was still recovering from having had blood clots in my lungs, I was more of an onlooker than an active participant, which allowed me to watch adults becoming increasingly creative—and having so much fun in the process, like children do.

A few weeks later, I was reminded of that experience the morning my grandson (age 3) began playing with Tinkertoys the three older grandchildren have enjoyed through the years. As he dumped the wooden sticks and circles and other components onto the bed where we were playing, the instruction sheet fell out.


“Nana, let’s make these,” Michael said, pointing to the diagrams.

“Honey, we can’t,” I said. “Some of the pieces we need are lost.”

Not upset by that, he began using the available pieces to make unique designs. For a time, I worked alongside him, creating fairly typical things like a flower, etc. But I began to notice that he wasn’t even attempting to create anything that already had a name. He was simply having fun fitting all the pieces together—in no particular order. And, let me tell you, he created some rather grand designs.

Naturally, I had to take pictures of him and his creations. So, for more than an hour he continued to be engrossed in his designs as I snapped photo after photo. (The external flash on my camera was pointed toward the white ceiling, causing reflected light to fall softly upon him, keeping him from being distracted—or blinded—by bright light.) While he played with his toys, I “played” with my camera by changing settings and lenses and shooting positions, and so forth. So, once again, as during the photography workshop, “A good time was had by all.”


As I reflect on that, I wonder why we adults rarely permit ourselves to enjoy creative activities. Why do we feel we ought to suppress that wonderful ability our Creator has placed within us? After all, He is creative! Beginning with the first book in the Bible, there are all sorts of acknowledgements of His creativity. Since He obviously enjoys expressing His creativity and surveying with pleasure His work, shouldn’t we?

©2010 by Johnnie Ann Burgess Gaskill. For permission to use, please contact her at johnniegaskillDOTgmailDOT com.