<\/em>The poet\u2019s eye, in a fine frenzy rolling, Creativity can be blocked by ego. Whether we become too full of ourselves or surrender to incessant worry, inferiority and self-doubt, either way we focus solely on ourselves, leaving no room for creative insight.<\/p>\n Creativity can be cultivated by meditating, by reflecting on the patterns of nature, by taking time to embrace whatever brings you joy.<\/p>\n Creativity brings vision and the courage to pursue new possibilities. I grew up hearing John and Robert Kennedy say, \u201cMost people look at things the way they are and ask \u2018Why?\u2019 I dream of things that never were and say, \u2018Why not?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Now, more than ever, our world needs creativity\u2014yours and mine. To transcend today\u2019s\u00a0 monumental challenges,\u00a0 we must each cultivate our creativity to offer new visions of possibility to this beautiful, troubled planet we call home.<\/p>\n What is one thing you can do to cultivate your creativity today?<\/p>\n Diane<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I began asking this question in college while reading the English poets. Traherne, Blake, and Wordsworth found their inspiration looking back on childhood. Donne was inspired by love, Milton by a passionate commitment to his ideals. Shakespeare\u2019s characters danced out … Continue reading
\nDoth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven,
\nAnd as imagination bodies forth
\nThe forms of things unknown, the poet\u2019s pen
\nTurns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing
\nA local habitation and a name.
\n(V.i. 12-17)
\nOver the years, from my own experience and that of others, I\u2019ve found that creativity requires a clear channel, a sense of openness, and faith in the larger process.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.scu.edu\/writeherewritenow\/files\/2011\/08\/Diane-photo-Aug-27-AA_r12.jpg\")
<\/a>Creativity can also be thwarted by distractions. As Coleridge was writing \u201cKubla Khan,\u201d he was interrupted by a knock on the door from a person from Porlock. When he returned to his desk, his inspiration had fled. The poem remains unfinished, leaving only mysterious glimmers of \u201ccaverns measureless to man.\u201d<\/p>\n