May Chat
What you can expect this month:
Reconnection
May Music Mix
Mermay
Undersea Color Palettes
Reconnection
It feels super good to enter into May. The sun is shining, the showers are ending and all those flowers are starting to bloom.
I feel the same parallels to the season in my own life. The last months, I was working so hard to force myself to be myself again and to be honest, it was difficult, painful and I wasn’t listening in. A lot of things I did over the last months, I didn’t like, including some of my newsletters! This last month, I’ve been refocusing on those things that make me happy and that I enjoy and I’m ready for what that will continue to bring this month. I’ve spent April planting the seeds, in May, I am ready to tend the garden.
You don’t know what you know until you know, but I should have known I was forcing normal when I couldn’t find the joy in my art anymore. A little bit like a canary in the coal mine, my art was struggling to get oxygen and I should have noticed things weren’t quite right. It feels good to be getting back to myself and to also know I’m not lying to myself anymore about how I am feeling. I can acknowledge I’m still doing the work and it’s not always the easiest, but everyday, I feel a little bit stronger, a little bit better, a little more me. I think I am back to a person people want to spend time with again. All my happiness pots are planted and I’m looking forward to the big positive things coming my way this next month.
I think this is a nice chance for all of us to just check in with our art, think about how we’re feeling and make sure we are finding the joy in it. Is there a place to do a little spring cleaning? It is totally okay to just not be okay for a little bit sometimes. This is a lesson I’m just now starting to learn. I feel like people say that a lot, but it takes some time to sink in.
A few things I’ve been doing to reconnect have been the following:
Tending to Neglected Relationships: I have a bunch of people that I’ve kind of allowed to wither. I’m reaching out to people, making plans and being actively engaged in people’s lives. I am very good at telling myself that people are busy and don’t have time for me or that they wouldn’t want to see me. I’m working at breaking that habit and just asking if people want to go and do something or if they want to make plans. So far, all those people I was sure didn’t have the time for me, all had the time and we spent really nice days together.
No new people: I do genuinely want to make some new friends and bring in some fresh faces. So, this may sound a bit counterintuitive, but I’m not open to introducing new people into my life at this moment. This is mostly because I’ve realized I have a lot of relationships I want to tend to before I start allowing myself to open back up to new things again. I also want to make sure that as I get back to myself, I’m listening into what I want and that I don’t have too many new voices whispering in my ears. When I feel like I’m in the right place, the grand opening will come and I’ll be happy to get to know new faces then. For now, I’m making sure the shop is fully stocked, the plants are blooming beautifully and everything is in order before anyone stops by for a gander. I love a metaphor, if you can’t tell.
Long Walks and Exercise: I can get into my own head a lot. I think a lot of creative types are very much lost in their thoughts. Getting outside to get some fresh air, see people doing things and just enjoying the sunshine has been amazing. I had also stopped running so I am very out of shape after about 6 months with no running, but it is nice to get the blood pumping as well and I feel powerful when I accomplish a running route and like I’ve done something awesome for myself.
Reading and Games: I’m finding fun in reading again. My current favorite thing to do is sit outside when it’s sunny and read a few chapters of my book in the late afternoon. I’m currently reading “The Empire of Gold” by S.A. Chakraborty. I’ve also been playing Rimworld, which is just fun silliness. I’m also eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new Zelda game.
I know there are so many more things I can share with you, but I will stop here before this goes on for too long. I hope at least one of them will resonate and you’ll give it a try to reconnect to yourself and hopefully reconnect to your art some too!
May Music Mix
Music has also been a thing I have been diving into lately. I’ve never done this before, but I thought it might be fun to build a little playlist of some of my current favorite drawing songs. It’s definitely an ecclectic, very Megan assortment that I have put together. I realize my tastes wont be for everyone, but I hope it is fun anyways. You can find the playlist here.
Mermay
I am not a HUGE fan of mermaids, but this month also brings #mermay. If you’re short on inspiration, I’d suggest giving a couple mermaids a try. It never hurts to have some undersea pieces for your portfolio.
Since I don’t love mermaids, I like to try to think about what would make mermaids cool for me. Could it be something with an interesting tail pattern? A mermaid wearing the coolest outfit? Some intersting underwater lighting? A bit of dark mystery?Does the mermaid have a really fun hobby? Who does a mermaid spend her time with? My favorite solution to that so far has been a little pufferfish, but maybe you have some fun ideas too! If you find yourself stuck this month, give a mermaid a try and connect with all the other folks doing mermaids!
Undersea Color Palettes
If you do want to try to go “under the sea” this month, I’ve also prepared a few undersea color palettes to get you going. Give them a try! Perhaps try a more unconventional one and see what might happen!
Wishing you all the happiest creating. And here’s to watching all of our flowers bloom for us this month!