Finding Solace in Solitude through a Daily Creative Practice

In the era of social distancing, we all are spending a lot of time at home.

Even if you are quarantining with housemates, significant others, or friends, much of this time is spent in solitude.

I urge you to take this as an opportunity to create.

Whatever little craft you do once in awhile, or maybe used to do as a kid, pick it back up again and make it a daily habit.

The “daily” part matters. This is what transforms something from a hobby to a passion. This is how it becomes an act of restoration and comfort. Of solace.

I believe developing this habit is the strongest defense we can take to protect our mental health against the barrage of awful news. People are talking a lot about “emotional resilience” these days. A strong inner passion can serve as the foundation for a strong emotional mind. This passion is not necessarily impacted by the world’s events, and it will not necessarily impact the world’s events, at least not for a long time, and that’s okay. The passion lives in its own world. This world can be accessed by anyone who puts in the time.

So take it slowly, and don’t beat yourself up about it, but do it every day you can. You may lack discipline at first. You may be antsy, you may be tired. That’s okay. Pick a time of day and a place to sit, and sit there. Every day you sit, willing for something to happen, your body and mind get used to you sitting there, and eventually tire of not doing anything, and then bam! there is your next idea. Eventually, you will feel antsy without it.

The second part of the daily practice is to find a way to share it. When you’ve built up your passion, created something from scratch, you may stretch across the globe via internet to connect with someone else. You may access a connection that is stronger than can be found in most Zoom chats (though without the fun backgrounds, but I digress). It starts from inside you. It starts with the daily practice.

These are scary times and they will get worse. But this practice has helped keep me sane and I hope it will be helpful for others. I hope we will all find new ways to connect with one another.

What are you making, what can you share? How are you managing the solitude?

Photo by Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash