Beauty in the Journey

with Fractured Stories of Hope comes a New Virtual Art Show opening May 1

Beauty in the Journey, Digital Drawing

Beauty in the Journey

This digital drawing was created as part of my most recent rendition of a new daily journal practice which I adopted beginning April of last year to provide strength and comfort during an unstable time. This particular piece, “Beauty in the Journey” was drawn in a moment of reflection on my personal journey - with the scars of the prior year healing and creating new layers of complexity, beauty, and hope within me. The figure in the drawing represents time I spent during the summer of 2019 enjoying the history and beauty of the Mediterranean. The texture and patterns represent miles of cobblestone roads walked during this trip, leading into the more than 200 miles of walks, hikes, and runs on the earthen trails of the Willamette Valley in my home state of Oregon this past year. Along all these paths I found strength, growth, and new hope in the quiet, contemplative moments they afforded. I followed new possibilities in self-acceptance and found greater endurance born from each step I traveled along the way.

The Practice of Journaling

While currently taking the form of digital drawings, my method and means of journaling changed and morphed over the last 13 months, the consistency being in a small creative element as part of each entry. Everything from daily photos to patterned drawings and knitted swatches became not only a daily distraction but also a welcome focal point to consider and share my thoughts and emotions from the day. Admittedly, there were times along the way where an entry wasn’t made, but with consistent effort, the practice took root and became a valuable outlet in the harder moments while providing calm waters for my often disheveled mind. But it was by understanding and even embracing the fact that my daily creative endeavor would evolve over time and by reflecting on the strategies which kept me engaged in the journaling process, I was able to maintain this practice which I hope to continue well beyond this year.

My Daily Journaling Strategies

1. Choose 1 simple and short creative task I can do every day for a given period of time (preferably 15 minutes or less), over a pre-determined number of days. (An open-ended period of 30 days works well but can be less or more, depending on the type of creative task and the engagement it maintains.) Keeping it simple, short, and varied over time keeps me from being overwhelmed or disengaged.

2. Use a reminder system. (And here I’ve used many, often switching the system about as often as I changed up the tasks). From daily phone reminders and alarms to wall calendars and handwritten post-it notes on my desk, I accept that it’s in my nature to hit refresh with my systems every so often.

3. Grace is important when missing a day or two. Even Duo-Lingo knows this (which, according to the language app, shows I’m at 388 days of daily French lessons even though I missed 4 or 5 days somewhere in there, thanks to what’s knows as a “Streak Freeze”). It’s okay to give yourself a break on those days that you just completely forget, were too overwhelmed or distracted, or maybe just simply too tired. No need to panic or throw the process out the window - just claim your “Streak Freeze”!

4. I accept that I like to change the parameters. While I also like to set goals for myself and maintain some sort of consistency through a process, I also understand that I like to vary my goals and am willing to re-consider and edit them along the way. Accepting this as part of the process allows me to enjoy the benefits of a routine while accomodating my more non-routine nature.

5. Finally, I find contemplating the consistent threads which appear throughout the process informs my life’s journey in a thoughtful and meaningful way, and led me to new creating new art to understand my past and express my hope for the future.

Journaling as Inspiration

Not only did this dose of daily creative tasks pave the way for new digital art pieces, but it also allowed me to embark on a new painting, collaging, and writing journey culminating in a Virtual Art Show titled: “Fractured Stories of Hope”. Opening this week (May 1, 2021) with an introductory video, the show includes the release of more than 50 digital drawings created over a period of 30 days of journaling.

However this show progresses, and wherever my daily journaling and artmaking may take me, I know there is Beauty in the Journey. For as I stand here in this moment in stillness (in concert with this statue filled with the lines of life crisscrossing across our bodies) I offer my gratitude in feeling this moment fully, scars and all. I also recognize that every journey starts with a first step - even if it’s the last of several first steps. They all inform the process. And when I am ready to take the next first step I know that creating art and hope will be a part of my journey.

Happy Journaling to you all!

~ Jennifer

p.s. For those of you enjoying the Oscars tonight - Wish me luck in my Oscars pool! The winner chooses the next 3 movies to watch in our household as well as the next take-out meal. I’m really craving some brew-pub food from one of our awesome local Corvallis restaurants! Fingers crossed.

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To find out more about this series and the month-long art show they inspired, feel free to subscribe to my newsletter or follow the progress online here: JenniferLommers.com/artshow