I read somewhere that writer’s block is when your imaginary friends
stop talking to you! That may be true
for those who write fiction but as a non-fiction writer that's not an excuse I can use.
The worst thing I can do when I am stuck for words is to sit
alone at the keyboard and try to force the words to flow through my
fingertips. A change of scenery can be
the very thing needed to inspire my creativity.
Most often that means spending time in nature. God has surrounded me with beauty and wants
me to take the time to enjoy it. When I
walk and let my mind roam free I allow him to speak to me.
I have just come back
from a vacation where I was blessed to be able to go for long walks along the
beach most mornings. As I walked I often
had the strains of the song In The Garden
going through my mind. Although I was at a beach and not a garden, the
words were still appropriate: “And He walks with me, and He talks with me, And
He tells me I am His own; And the joy we share as we tarry there, None other
has ever known..”
The joy I receive as I choose to walk with him is an
experience that is able to refresh and energize at the same time.
Last summer I found inspiration at a lake I frequented. Sometimes it was a walk through the trees that lined the shore. Other times a bench
beside the lake became my quiet spot for reflection. Watching the sun set with no buildings to
impede the view would make my heart sing.
There is something about the beauty and peacefulness of nature that
restores my soul.
I had never thought of these times as artist’s dates but
that is exactly what they were. The
greatest artist of all, the one who paints the sky with muted shades at sunset
and the trees and flowers with a vast array of vivid colours wants to spend
time with me. When I stop my striving
and bask in the beauty he has surrounded me with, I can’t help but be inspired.
