Where Did My Wonder Go?
Adventures in creative stagnation
It’s only through curiosity that creativity can flourish.
I know why I’ve been feeling stuck — why the words, which used to flow so freely, have seemingly dried up and left me with a riverbed full of fish skeletons.
Fortunately, I’ve been able to pull a small amount of creativity, scraping the bottom of the barrel so to speak, in order to write a short story and tap out a couple dozen words for my novel. But, somehow, it feels kind of empty.
I know why my fingers itch to create, but I can’t seem to pull any inspiration out of my well of creativity.
My sense of wonder, which I spent so long cultivating and nourishing to save my mental health in the face of anxiety, has been left to dwindle.
What changed?
For one, I left my job as a dog walker. A job that had me outside for hours at a time, experiencing all the seasons in their most beautiful and brutal forms. I saw the first buds on the trees, the first signs of flowers in the spring, the thunderstorms in summer, and the lush colours in the fall. And I experienced it all watching the wonder and joy of a dog.
