It’s been a shitty year for many of us.
The holidays might have been rough.
There’s a lot of “rah-rah-rah! it’s a new year!” stuff being spread on social media along with the general darkness of tragic news and the current state of politics.
I’m sure there’s a lot of personal darkness, too, that isn’t seeing the light.
I’ve personally been feeling introspective, retrospective, even. Craving time for reflection and to get back to some sort of essence… magic... the creative flow… the space of inspiration before creation can happen.
The reality is, I’m not there yet.
So rather than forcing myself to create before I’m ready, or to use my injured leg too much before it’s healed, I’m giving in to what’s happening inside.
I recently came across the dance videos I made 7 years ago (!) when I first started getting back into dance and my creative process. Something in them struck me. (note to self: when you feel “struck” by something, it’s a sign you’re going in the right direction.)
There’s a certain tenderness that was present back then when I first started creating dance videos. It was before dance became a part of my career, and there was a sense of wonder and deep honesty that, I’m not shy to say, upon looking back, I really admired about myself back then.
So I’ve dug up lots of those old videos as part of this effort to introspect. To re-inspire myself in the present.
I’ve been sharing one a day on Instagram, along with a brief story of why I made the video or what was happening in my personal life at the time. It’s an intimate peek behind the scenes to shed some light on the drive to create, in spite of or because of whatever was going on at the time.
The process of writing these blurbs and reviewing these videos has already lit up something inside me.
If you feel curious and want to join me this month in the process, come on over to my Instagram land and follow me there.
I’m also encouraging anyone who’s up for it to join in and find ways to re-inspire yourself, too.
If you feel so bold, share your own introspective - or retrospective - posts on the ‘gram and tag them with @jessgrippo / #reinspireyourself so that I can see what you’re up to.
We are all in this together. And I don’t know about you, but from my point of view, we certainly could use more inspired, creative humans adding positivity to this crazy world.
Wishing you hope, peace, and inspiration on this Friday the 13th.
to the tender dances that move us, Jess
p.s. Happy anniversary! While it’s the 7 year anniversary of publishing dance videos for me, it’s also the 5 year anniversary of this very blog you’re reading, Creative Fridays. It was a Friday the 13th in 2012 when I led my first creativity workshop and a couple of weeks later, I started writing weekly.
No matter how long you’ve been reading, please know that I’m so grateful for your presence here and so honored to be taking this journey with you.
If Creative Fridays has been part of your process in any meaningful way over the last 5 years, please just comment below and tell me how!
It would light up my world to know.
Thank you for being here.
p.p.s. For my NYC peeps, there’s no formal party happening tonight after all, but I’ll be at an Open Mic night at Shaktibarre in Williamsburg at 7:45pm and would love to see you there!
