Messy is Good?

I open the freshly delivered box and expect to see bottles of glitter paint. Instead, bottles of glitter stare at me and laugh. 

"Not Funny!" I say, while taking the bottles out of the box. I shake each one to make sure that the tiny glitter pieces are not shimmering in invisible paint. A tapping sound takes away all hope. Obviously, I ordered the wrong thing. 

The innocent looking, multi-colored bottles collectively yell one word at me.

MESSY!

 

I respond by tucking the bottles into a dark closet, away from my sight. Maybe one day I will have a use for them but not any time soon. My home studio is messy enough. This glitter will send me over the top. I'm just not ready for it.

The bottles can only be ignored so long. I mean look at them. They are oozing with color and sparkle. At first they whisper to me, "Please let us out." After failed attempts at freedom, they cleverly entice me by inviting me to....

PAINT

PLAY

SPARKLE

While painting, I pull out the white glitter bottle. The cap easily comes off and I remove the clear protector that keeps the glitter in place. I hear the glitter let out a sigh of relief as it finally makes a great escape, much like a genie escaping from a bottle at long last. Before the day is over, I open every bottle and pour some of it into my hands. From my hands, the glitter goes here, there and everywhere. And I'm telling you, it is messy. This glitter has a way of attaching itself to everything. At this point, it's even on my dog.

I'm not sure when it happened, but at some point in my early years, I took the saying "Cleanliness is next to Godliness" very seriously. A clean, neat, orderly environment makes me feel great and I thrive in it. And, thanks to the practice of intuitive painting, I am learning to thrive in the midst of a mess too. Whatever stretches me in intuitive painting eventually impacts other parts of my life too. This is a big plus about the practice of intuitive painting. The learning and stretching go far beyond the canvas.

Recently, someone told me that she likes to paint but she does not like the mess, so she does not paint. I had to wonder where else in life she might be short changing herself for the sake of avoiding a mess. Now, that's a deep question if you think about it beyond the tip of a paintbrush. 

How about you? What's your relationship with messiness? Where does the   "messy is good" perspective take you? 

 

Blessings!

Beverly

Opening Soon! 

TIP - The Intuitive Painting Place

(Where Messiness Thrives!)