I read a blog recently that talked about the need to not wait for inspiration to do something creative and it really hit home with me. When I graduated from college I thought that I would have no problem with writing regularly. After all, I would have much more time on my hands and I would have the freedom to write whatever I wanted to without having to feel stifled in any way. Well, I failed to realize that having to write was precisely what had kept me writing regularly. There's something about this real-life, grown-up world that has a tendency to press down upon us and distract us from those early dreams we once had. But the reality that I have to face is that it's my choice what I do with my time. There will always be work and cleaning and shopping and cooking and people to spend time with. And all of those things are necessary and important. But my life can become this whirl of going from one place to the next, and from one activity to another, and sometimes I stop and think where have my days gone? And there's this nagging feeling that I'm not doing all that I was meant to be doing.
I was made to create. We all were. And it may be that the kitchen is where some people ( like my sister) create, experimenting with flavors and presentation of various culinary ideas. And maybe some people create with paint or fabric or music. I think we know when we've found our niche because there's a certain release and feeling of satisfaction that comes from doing what we like or are good at. It's like Eric Liddell in the film Chariots of Fire says, "I know God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run I feel his pleasure." I have this desire to write a book one day, but books don't write themselves (to state the obvious, which sometimes I need to do for my own sake), and if I don't prioritize my time to even just practice writing then the likelihood of me ever writing an actual book is pretty slim.
I saw a quote once that said "A year from now you may wish you had started today." And isn't that so true? How many things do we push aside into the "maybe one day" category of our lives? But there isn't a one day. There's only today. So that's why I'm writing right now. Because deep inside me there's this voice that insists on speaking, and when I try to quiet it or ignore it, I feel the consequences deep in my soul. My skills aren't very sharp (they've been lying somewhat dormant for a while), but I know that just as a runner must train for a marathon, so I must commit to honing the skills and the desires that I have been entrusted with. I have a gift to give to the world. I have a unique perspective and voice and experience. So do you. No one else can offer exactly what you or I have in the way that we can share it. And it's time that we all admit that it's not humility to stick our heads in the mud and say 1) I'm just not talented or creative, 2) it's already been done, or 3) someone else could do it better. It's not about whether or not I think I'm good enough, or whether or not someone else does it better (there will always be that person). What matters is this: Am I giving what I can give? Am I using what I have? The world needs what we have to give. Whether it's a muffin to your neighbor or finding the cure to cancer--create! Don't waste time comparing what you do to what someone else can do. Take small steps every day and give what only you can give.
