When I was in grade school, I had a teacher scold me for coloring outside the lines. Then in middle school, I had a teacher tell me I wasn’t creative enough. That stayed with me into adulthood and it just goes to show that kids are impressionable and it can stifle aspects of their lives.
It took many years to reprogram that mindset that I wasn’t creative because I was so hard on myself. Nothing I did was perfect enough and that’s a tough way to live.
I took a 6 month cake decorating course many years ago on a whim with a friend. Every cake I made, I thought most of them were crap. But everyone seemed to love them, even my teacher. I learned to realize that their perspective was different than mine and maybe, just maybe, I had some creativity in me after all.
Cut to years later and I start making costumes and elaborate headpieces that made me more confident in the idea that my creativity has a place in this world.
I’ve learned to love and trust my own creative soul and it feels freeing.
Is there something from your childhood that you’ve carried with you through life? Is it something you’d like to change?
