I Love Synchronicity!

So, in the midst of all my creative challenges and opportunities lately comes this incredible post from How to Be Creative (incredible stuff - I recommend it to EVERYONE). This post speaks to me:

"a lot of people think being "creative" is something that "just happens." Well, perhaps this is true when you're young. But then the real world takes over and we find ourselves needing to eat.
Most of us deal with this by suppressing our creative selves. We call this conforming. We get a haircut, buy a suit, polish our shoes and pretend that the creative part of us is over, when in fact it isn't. We pretend that it's dormant, when it isn't. It's still awake inside us, knawing away, dying to get out. And keeping it buried is slowly killing us.
With the post-dotcom/9-11-Enron-Iraq world looming on us, suddenly we find the old certainties the powers-that-be promised us in return for our souls aren't materializing. The wee voice inside us gets louder."

The wee voice inside us, saying "I'd like my crayons back now, please" (or my guitar, or my video camera, or my paint brushes etc. etc.)
I've been a victim of creative self suppression for about 6 years now. I bought the suit, I got up early and went to work for the man (still am, for a while.) But today I will metaphorically stand on my desk and shout "I'd like my crayons back." I will stay up to midnight every night, and write a song a day; I will take leaves of absence from the corporate world to shoot video; I will paint and sing and dance and laugh - if only for myself and my own sanity.

I see the people who fail to acknowledge their creative selves every day. These are the people who live in comfortable homes and drive nice cars, but slowly drink themselves to death every night before work. These are the people who are fixated on how much better things used to be - who eternally wish that they were still 16 so that they could try to live life over. These are the people who get tension headaches and repeated heart attecks at an early age - then one day pass away, without life ever feeling like it was enough.
Well count me out please - I don't want to sell my soul away.

I am slowly extricating myself from the safe places and taking a step into the chaos of self actualization. This process takes time, and of course, has to be balanced with the need to eat and support oneself- but a balance can be achieved. Deepak Chopra talks about recognizing coincidences in your life as the opportunities that they really are. I have had a lot of creative coincidences in my life lately, and I think a creative storm is coming:

Coincidences/Opportunities: Meeting Nigel
Discovering GapingVoid
Being told by my friend to get of my ass and start writing
Offers of additional film opportunities
Applying for a two year work/school program that turned into
a one year school/school program, entailing a work break

I could go on.
I challenge you to take a look at the opportunities/coincidences in your life. Start tearing down the walls of perceived limitations and listen to the wee voice. You'll be glad ya did. We can do it together.

Oh, and I did complete my songwriting assignment last night.