I travel quite a bit with my fiancé these days. He’s an artist and he shows his work around the world. (If you’re curious about his work you can see it here.) I love sharing in his creative process and co-creating with him as his business manager and assistant.
I’ve learned to expect the unexpected when I travel and work with him. I’m in awe with how present he stays as he deals with a plethora of issues that can arise in building his installations. He understands that things will not always work on the first try, and whenever I secretly question if they ever will, he comes up with the solution to the problem in an instant.
He inspires me so much. It just feels good to learn from him about how to anticipate changes, follow new routes, and discover different perspectives.
And I feel so grateful for the opportunities to go to new countries I never thought I would see.
I’m aware that I can be more concerned with the results than with the journey itself. I have often thought that the curtain should close and the audience should cheer in a certain way in order to truly relish taking a bow. But Dan doesn’t think about those things at all. He’s only interested in making beauty.
When he focuses on the process of creating, the joy of the adventure feels much more rewarding than the actual final product. Like a magician, he tinkers with his tools and poof! There comes inspiration.
Plus, Dan has grit. He has courage and resolve and a strength of character that inspires me to take risks and follow through with determination.
As I observe Dan, I’m curious about how to embrace this magic in myself. I often inquire:
What gives me “juice”? Where is the energy calling me? What possibilities could happen if I fully engaged?
I ask myself:
What if you dove off the high board? You didn’t second guess yourself? You were spontaneous? Whatever you did you couldn’t fail?
What if you could explore? You dared to discover? You let go of what you think you know to learn something you never knew before?
Dan and I both share our love for the unknown as we let the mystery unfold. And, we know that the greatest art we can create is a truly lived life.
We are all innately creative beings whether we realize it or not. Let’s travel together through this big, wild thing called life. I’ll meet you there, happily.
May all your magical dreams come true!
