Make it up

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Mike asked me during our regular smoke break about the ties that bind. What was it that loosely connected our group: same alma mater, smarts, working in media?

But it’s not that.

We’re all bound by our creativity, our passion to express ourselves in innovative ways.

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Mike should know. He shoots photos on a regular basis, something has become more than a hobby or an obligation during milestone family moments.

He could do it professionally and earn a good living. He could continue to do it as an outgrowth of his love of the equipment and the lighting and the million little details that make a good photo (or the one detail that can ruin it).

Writing, which has always been a companion of mine, has been a real outlet for me in the past year. I feel true freedom to express myself and my ideas, and even found ways to work within others’ (read: paying) formats.

In small ways, I could dabble a little in cooking, and I used to dabble in piano and flute, but it’s been so long. I still work on my storytelling — the stories usually take awhile and seem more interesting to me than my intended audience of one.

I like to make birthday cards, and funny lists, and playlists for the mood or season at hand. I chop up songs to make ringtones so that when my friends call, the mood is set.

I made a 48-hour scramble film this year, and put together a couple of simple videos. I’d like to get my house to reflect some of this unspent creative energy: paint colors, framed art, better flow and so on.

My other friends paint, write, play music, sing, shoot photos, cook, tell jokes, act and maybe a hundred other things to fulfill themselves. It’s a decidedly interesting group to know.

One documentary I watched this weekend was “Class Act,” which showed the elimination of arts education in schools nationwide. One expert talked about the nature of creativity. When he asked a roomful of adults if they were creative, only a few raised their hands.

When he asked a classroom of kids if they were creative, they all raised their hands.

The creative me is a like a little kid at play. And he’s having too much fun to ever quit.

Don’t you wish you were creative like me?

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