The Restory Retreat Centre

Notes from a different drummer Learning the unforced rhythms of grace The practical How Soul nurturing Treat-time Next up - FUN! And not just any fun, but tailor-made-for-you-and-you-alone fun. Sounds too good to be true? Read on. Again, we draw on the wisdom of Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, and introduce you to Artist’s Dates. We prefer to use the term Treat-time for the same concept, because we have experienced that many people’s immediate reaction when confronted with Artist’s Dates are to visibly shy away. They say something like: “I’m not creative”, “I’m no artist” or “I can’t draw or paint to save my life”. This is not about being a painter, potter, writer, dancer or actor. Nor will you need to take up any artist’s tool if it is not your inclination. This tool was created by Julia Cameron whose area of expertise lies in the unblocking of creativity, which she refers to as the inner artist or the inner child. We will in due course...

Playing with my food: Strawberry, black olives, french leeks and peperonata topped pizza. Inner artist treat deluxe! OK, I put my foot in it! When I wrote the post  Hidden in the heart of things , I confessed to having committed to a week of spoiling the inner artist with treats as prescribed by Julia Cameron in her book, The Artist's Way. The purpose of this twelve step program is the unblocking of creativity and I have worked through it a couple of times already the past decade, always with astounding (and often totally unexpected) results.     As I was listing my heart's desire in my task book, the thought occurred to me that it would make a good post to tell how and if I had managed to successfully execute this truly difficult task. It would also be an incentive to see it through: I do not enjoy stating publicly that I had flunked a test! Then of course, an anonymous comment on the post prompted me, and I knew I had to come clean.     You want honesty,...

My sister Marinetha and I (left) during one of our annual seaside holidays. Strange forces are at work in the creative process. I often find myself buckling under the heavy hand of a dry spell that settles on the back of my neck and keeps my vision aimed downward. Downhill it rapidly pushes me and soon I find myself in a dark valley where I am convinced that no light ever reaches. No spark of inspiration seems possible as I don't really have the capability of NOTICING things to produce the necessary spark.       I know rationally that at such times the trick is to simply carry on creating. Even if it feels hollow or nothing much. To just keep going. But it is almost impossible to propel my inner artist to do this when there is simply nothing that excites.       At other times it is a subtler enemy that sneaks in and knocks me off balance. I get a commission to make a really special gift  for a really special person on a really special occasi...