How come we’re here, doing the things we’re doing, wrestling with all these things happening to us?

To use Twyla Tharp’s term for finding ideas for her choreographic work, we’re scratching around through our stories to make sense of it all.  When we do, we begin to spot some possibilities for what our futures can be.

Adding a little new language can do this, making the invisible visible, or highlighting something important: a word or a phrase articulates everything we’ve been trying to figure out – and we play with it – paths open before us:

‘When you learn new responses, or any new language, you create new pathways of brain cells.’*

‘I sounds obvious, but I wonder how many people, whatever their medium, appreciate the gift of improvisation.  It’s your one opportunity in life to be completely free, with no responsibilities and no consequences.’**

Things don’t have to line up perfectly or be complete before you try out new ideas and thoughts.  Neither do you.  You don’t have to feel like it, either.

Tell yourself your story, even if it’s so far a hypothesis, and see what happens.  Talk positive to yourself and you’ll find you’re different and things are different.

Interesting, isn’t it?

‘Pleasure is way of feeling.  But joy is a way of seeing.’^

(*From Michael Heppell’s How To Be Brilliant.)
(**From Twyla Tharp’s The Creative Habit.)
(^From Mark Rowlands’ Running With the Pack.)