I Fought for This

Apr 21

If you’ve been around for more than 2 seconds then you know that I am a creative soul. Highly structured and analytical mixed with a wildly creative brain. I operate best when my day consists of structure and taking creative liberties.

Now that the world is starting to open up again my life has progressively gotten busier. I am watching the calendar fill up slowly, but surely and it’s overwhelming. Pre-pandemic I was rarely home, during the pandemic I was faithful to quarantine even well after life started opening up, and now I am fighting with everything in me to keep a healthy balance. I don’t want to have a full schedule anymore. So much has changed in the past three years and I’ve enjoyed slow living.

I want slow living.

Correction - I need it!

I am not ready nor do I want to go back to a fast-paced lifestyle. When I felt the overwhelm starting to settle in, I decided to bring out my paintbrushes for the first time in a very long time. I painted this portrait of a woman on vacation in Tanzania on mini cold press paper. I had tons of distractions and other things I could have been doing; however, I knew I needed to slow my mind.

This tiny painting almost didn’t happen. I fought for the time I allowed myself to slow down - to not worry about the to-do list, but prioritize my need.

I am practicing creating space in my life for stillness, blocking off the calendar, and becoming more comfortable saying, “I am unable to make it” messages.

-Briana Ariel