Movement and Creativity

Slice of Life at TwoWritingTeachers.org

It is really difficult to get enough movement and exercise during both the Covid-19 outbreak and this hottest time of year (On 23 July days it was over 40C [104F] and got up to 118F a couple times. It is also steamy). We sometimes go to the mall early in the morning and walk before the shoppers come, but we don’t do that too often because of my husband’s work schedule.

However, I do keep moving and creating even in my small flat. As I sit at my computer so often these days, I have learned that I need to get up just as often. I pop up and walk every hour, at least for 250 steps. It does clear my head. I am on a serious band exercise routine every other day.

Today when I needed a creativity break after working, I went into the kitchen, watched the news, and painted part of an egg carton that has been sitting here for a couple weeks and my husband was getting close to throwing in the garbage. Making my very hungry caterpillar took the sting off watching the news with chyrons like, “All the promises trump has made, but not kept on health care.”

Another thing I’m doing these days is practicing my singing. I still can’t believe that I signed up for virtual singing lessons, and I even do my homework! I practice creativity in the kitchen too. We are eating better than ever.

Are creativity and movement related? Absolutely. I am a changed person after these months of living more intentionally and with a greater range of priorities. In the past, I could get stuck in the overwork cycle of doing school work for days at a time. It is so unhealthy! Even after the coronavirus chapter, I am committed to exercise and creativity and not just work.

Today is Tuesday, time for a Slice of Life post, Day 161 in Bahrain’s Covid-19 chapter, and Prompt #103 in The Isolation Journals with Suleika Jaouad. (This prompt was about how  movement helps with fresh ideas and contemplative thinking.)