Friday, October 09, 2015

Persistence revisited.


So, persistence has been my one-word resolution for 2015.
 

I am an expert flitter and a quitter -- flitting from one project to the next, one art form to another, and then just losing interest. And this tendency goes way beyond art -- I do the same with exercise. And cooking. I start a lot of things, very enthusiastically, and then, I somehow lose momentum.

But it occurred to me last week that I had completely forgotten my yearly word. I had to look through old blog posts to even find it. So much for 2015 and persistence, I thought. But I took stock of this year, and I realized that persistence was working its ass off for me.

I had been thinking of persistence in relation to my art and all of the projects and techniques I abandon just around the time I should be pushing through for some kind of creative breakthrough. But in the rare, quiet times when I took an honest look at my life, I knew the really challenge didn’t start with my art. My lack of follow-through was a symptom of a much bigger issue in my life. My bad habits all stemmed from the same place. The bottom of a wine glass.

So, on August 30, I stopped. 

How is that persistence, you may wonder? Well, anyone who has quit a bad habit knows that usually, prior to quitting are many, many false starts -- or more accurately, stops, and a lot of soul-searching, and promises to oneself before one succeeds. And that is big-ass persistence. 

Of course, clarity of mind brings with it a whole shitload of new issues. My mind is a pain in the ass, truth be told. It won’t shut up. So right now I am doing a lot of reading and listening and hopefully learning, always learning.

Xo Peace and love.

5 comments:

Createology said...

Hello Kerri Jean. I have been thinking of you. Persistence is one of those background "beings, feelings, happenings" and so on. I am so glad you are not giving up on you and who you are. We all have things to work on and improve upon. You are not alone in this world. Learning is a wonderful tool we have and it keeps us interesting and interested in life. Congratulations My Friend...

Karen 2.0 said...

You've got this -- even when you don't think you do.

fran pascazio said...

I'll receiver my comments until the next Cabinet meeting…..I'm sorry I hadn't visited your blog for awhile and I just saw this today…10-15!!!!!

fran pascazio said...

And what I meant to say is "I'll reserve my comments"….geez

reclaimed wood dining table said...

Congratulations my friend. Persistence is a big word. But you got this!