Week 6: Recovering a Sense of Abundance

Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves by Mukumbra

At the end of each week of The Artist's Way, you're asked to do a check-in about how the week went, how you felt about using the tools (morning pages, artist's date), any creative freedom that you noticed or other things helpful to your recovery as an artist. I'm going to start doing a little round-up for myself on here as well.

This week, as you may tell from the title of this post, is themed as "recovering a sense of abundance." In really broad strokes, it means that I'm supposed to be examining my relationship with money. What I think about it, how I feel about it in relation to my art, etc.

I read the chapter this week with a similar feeling to how I read it the first time I did the workbook. That is, "this doesn't apply to me right now."

Last time, as I have mentioned, I started the book as I was starting my final semester of undergrad. I didn't have any sort of job to speak of, and my parents were supporting me.

This time around, I'm in my second year of grad school. My tuition is paid for by the school, I get paid for the classes I teach at school, and my parents are still helping me out.

So, both now and then, I thought that my financial circumstances were out of my control. This week in particular, I noticed myself reading the chapter and thinking that my money problems would be fine if I had the time (like other non-grad-schoolians do) to just go out and get a job. Or two.

And then I realized that this is exactly the sort of thinking that we are meant to examine. I have, unconsciously, placed myself the victim of my circumstances and have allowed that to change the way I perceive money in relation to my creative endeavors.

I have just as much ability to go out and find work as anyone else. My hours are more limited, so my options are more limited, but it is my thinking that is stopping me from going out and trying. (Also, feeling like it's not a great idea, as much as I'd like a little more financial security, because grad school keeps you busy.)

I did, however, start to think that it would be nice for a little extra change to come my way, and - in a nice little bit of synchronicity - a friend of mine had a couple of voice students that she couldn't fit into her schedule, and asked me if I'd like to take them on. Why yes, Universe, I would.

So, once again, thank you Julia Cameron, for making me think about my life. Particularly for making think of the parts of my life that I try not to think about. I'm more and more grasping the fact that my life is what I make of it, and that's an empowering, humbling thing to know.