That Bloated Feeling

I’ve been feeling a bit bloated lately. I’ve been retaining too much inspiration and gathered wisdom, holding onto it for another day, another blog post, another moment when all the right and necessary thoughts fall into place so I can communicate properly. But it’s slowing me down. I’m full to the brim and the extra weight is making it hard to exert any energy on the things I need to.

My brain feels stuffed, leaking around the edges like my son’s bed mattress that is cracked on one edge, revealing the sponge-like stuffing. Or like his ratty Spiderman costume that no matter how much I patch it, a seam screams, busting with the shear size of his 4-year-old muscles. My seams are screaming too. They are telling me I’ve been consuming and storing. Gleaning and hoarding. It’s time to let some things go, to empty my reserves, to share the wealth.

Sometimes I get into a mode where it’s easier to collect other’s insight than it is to process my own.

I’m in one of those places and the only way out is to stop collecting (there will always be one more book to read, one more link sent from a friend, one more video to watch, one more conversation to inspire.) It’s time to do the hard work of turning off the inputs, so that I can amp up the energy for my personal output. It’s time to set new goals and to begin.

I feel like the girl on Willy Wonka that turns into a blueberry, swelling dangerously big and in serious need of being juiced. She fears the painful process, but Willy Wonka knows it must be done. There is no choice.

I have no choice.

{If you enjoyed this post, you might also enjoy The Need to Make or I’m Afraid to Disappear.)

Tagged as: art, artist, block, creative, creatives