Blogging and Breathing: My Weekly Creative Rendezvous

By Paul Roberts

Whew. What a ride.

My youngest daughter, Cosette Laurie Christine Roberts is now Cosette Laurie Christine Barnes. Her one time fiance is now officially my son-in-law.

After the formal ceremony on Saturday, Taylor was informally initiated into the Roberts clan by spending the majority of the day on Sunday in our living room with my mom, brothers, sister, spouses, and some of their children. Cosette’s sisters and “significant others” were present for part of the day. Carol’s brother and sister and another friend made an appearance as well. I must say, Taylor more than held his own throughout the incredibly clever conversational repartee of the day.

It’s now Monday morning. Other than Cosette and Taylor, who leave for a brief honeymoon this afternoon, the out of town guests have all departed. The wedding and reception spaces have been reorganized and cleaned. The laundry room here at 7 Diamond St. is booked for the next 24 hours, cleaning towels, linens, etc. The dirty dishes in the kitchen have shrunk down to a manageable mountain, and the backyard has had a good going over after a weekend of three extra dogs and no time to scoop poop.

Once again, whew. Whhhhhewwww.

I have been looking forward to this morning. Blog time. Sitting at my desk in my office, my door closed, my dog Cleo napping at my feet, the clock on the piano rhythmically reminds me that no matter how fast paced a week like this last one can seem, life only…passes…one…second…at...a…time.

This very private blog writing time is my creative rendezvous for the week. It’s not work. It’s my “fun and playful outing” for the week. Our website describes it as “a one to two hour outing all by yourself…to provide inspiration…in your home or outside your home.  The main goal is to have fun.” One of my new friends, writer and music producer Rick Rubin, author of The Creative Act: A Way of Being, talks about the Grow Me a Story creative rendezvous concept in this way:

     “Consider detaching from the story of your life as it’s happening…As hard 

as it may seem, seek to experience events like these (busy, difficult, tiring, 

dramatic experiences) as if you are watching a movie. You’re observing a 

scene where the protagonist faces a seemingly insurmountable challenge.

     It’s you, but it’s not you.

     Instead of sinking into the pain…or the stress…or the grief…if (we are)

practicing detachment the response might be: I wasn’t expecting that plot

twist. I wonder what is going to happen to our hero next. There is always

a next scene, and that next scene may be one of great beauty and fulfillment.

The hard times were the required setup to allow these new possibilities

to come into being.

     The outcome is not the outcome. The darkness is not an end point, nor is 

the daylight. They live in a continually unfolding, mutually dependent cycle. 

Neither is bad or good. They simply exist.

     This practice–of never assuming an experience you have is the whole 

story–will support you in a life of open possibility and equanimity…Zoom

in and obsess. Zoom out and observe. We get to choose…Art has the

power to snap us out of our transfixion, open our minds to what’s possible,

and reconnect with the eternal energy that moves through all things.”

The week ahead doesn’t slow down. My days are still full of a wide range of activities, but I’m learning, scene by scene, to regularly plan a playful rendezvous with that artful, creative child that is…me.