Creativity and Intuition and The Artist’s Way

The past week has been full of creative sparks and mountains moving! Not only did I climb back on the Artist’s Way wagon and commit to finishing the final two chapters — including all of the boundary-breaking tasks — but I happened upon a book that has been life-altering in the most thrilling way.

Mona Lisa Schulz is an MD, a PhD, and a medical intuitive. Years ago I clipped a magazine article about her, intrigued by her craft, but finally gave the earmarked and wrinkled page the heave-ho while purging the filing cabinets last fall. Then, last Thursday evening, I came across another reference to her in one of Christiane Northrup’s books. My library had a copy of Mona Lisa’s Awakening Intuition ready and waiting on the shelf and the rest is history, as they say.
She describes intuition as something that

“occurs when we directly perceive facts outside the range of the usual five senses and independently of any reasoning process.”

How does this relate to creativity? As a scientist and physician, Schulz’s references are most often of that ilk.

“A host of scientists and inventors — from Pythagoras to Thomas Edison to Jonas Salk — have credited intution with helping to spur their accomplishments. … Salk … maintained that creativity depended upon the interaction of intuition and reasoning.”

By looking at the seven emotional centers of the body, akin to chakras, Schulz guides us through understanding the relationship between illness and emotional health, with intuition as the compass for insight and potential healing.

I read into the early hours of Sunday morning and had a profound revelation. I discovered the thread that ties my own creative expressions to one emotional center in particular. This was more than a ‘lightbulb moment’. It was a dramatic, freeing, exhilarating, wall-crumbling experience. The theme of my creative writing is rooted predominantly in this emotional center. And frustrations about a life-long physical challenge were also addressed. Immediately I knew that whatever had been blocking me from finishing that ’07 vision board was no longer in the way.

I’m thinking that the connection between this and Julia Cameron’s message is that through the repetitive exercises of morning pages and artist dates, as well as the chapter-specific tasks, one becomes more sensitive to, aware of, one’s own story (aka, emotional centers). With increased self-awareness comes the clarity and energy with which to embrace the artistic expression(s) of choice. Thoughts, anyone?

First thing Sunday morning, I went to the dining room table still covered in collage images, words, glue, tape, scissors and poster board. I went to work immediately. Decisions flowed easily. There was no second-guessing or self-doubt. And before leaving for spin class, the vision board collage was complete. What a feeling of accomplishment and closure!

If you want to know more about Mona Lisa Schulz, click here. I think she’s amazing.
p.s. Interesting color theme shift: Last year’s vision board was predominantly reds and pinks. This year’s is heavy on the greens and blues, with some pink peonies as accent!