A Bonus Writing Prompt
Try this visual writing prompt inspired by Lenten themes, the first week of spring, + a creative collage
After a week of my muscles being locked in the tension of life’s latest hurdle, I took a morning to set my creative table.
I carried the pile of newspapers that had been sitting unread in my office and set them on the left side of the table. On the right, I set the smaller stack of magazines to my right. Then I gathered my tools—a few rolls of washi tape, the kids’ glue stick, my orange fabric scissors, and my sketchbook.
My body eased as I prepared my table for one of my favorite restorative creative practices: the classic collage.
PSA: A collage is such a helpful creative practice for anyone feeling empty and tired. It requires little energy and allows you to create something uniquely beautiful out of borrowed things.
This is why I turned to the collage this week—I was depleted and wanted to fill my creative well.
I love the intuitive listening that happens as cut snippets of colors, shapes, images, and words from magazines or newspapers. It’s freeing and delightfully playful.
But this week, something pulled me toward an idea I had never considered before: I felt compelled to add some green foliage from my yard.
Now, I’m no stranger to collecting tidbits of plants and flowers and pressing them into my journals, but I’ve never added them to a collage before.
In retrospect, as I write this, I realize that’s a half-truth. Not very long ago, I created a digital collage on Canva for an Instagram post during my Prose + Pastels series. One of the elements I added was a photo of some live greenery. I suppose that was a whisper pointing me in the direction of what was to come (and now I also see the image of the hand pointing that I chose).
Back to the collage—and, more importantly, this prompt.
Combining cut-out paper scraps with live greenery felt like a divine moment, especially when I noticed the leaves juxtaposed with the image of a person in bed.
I want to invite you to explore what this collage page in the photograph speaks to you.