Resistance to this project was inevitable, and today the force is strong! It’s after 8:30 pm and I have had a full day, so sitting down to write today feels like a chore. But I’m not missing a day yet! Today, I’ll share the details of my The Artist’s Way weekly check-in, a review process meant to keep me connected to my why.

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100 Liminal Days is an experimental project of embracing my current transitional season after exiting my business by sharing an honest, real-time account of my self-initiation experience in daily posts. I’m sending shorter weekly recaps only via my newsletter. Visit Day 1/100 to learn more and sign up in the footer of this page to get the weekly recaps delivered to your inbox.

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The Artist’s Way Week Two Check-In

How many days this week did you do your Daily Pages?

I’m proud to say that I have not yet missed a day writing my Daily Pages. However, it was close yesterday! I wrote my pages right before bed. Several of the days early in the week started off with me feeling a little grumpy and anxious about being behind on some tasks I needed to get done. I’m having trouble squeezing all of this writing into days when I also have other responsibilities or commitments.

How was the experience for you? How did the Pages work for you? Describe them.

I read through all of the Daily Pages from this past week and the week really has been a special one for multiple reasons.

On Sunday last week, I spent the afternoon with my family. My dad has stage three liver cancer and has been doing little things that seem like he’s preparing for his final days. One of the things he’s wanted to do for many years is to get baptized. He asked me to baptize him in Lake Buchanan, so we set up a time for the family to get together and witness the special occasion. My poison ivy rash was at its worst by this time, my niece got sick and couldn’t come, and then Emily’s flight got diverted causing her to miss being there as well. All of those things had me in a grumpy mood because nothing was going to plan.

But that morning as the news of the cancelations were coming in and I was feeling terrible from a lack of sleep and constant itching, I wrote about how I was feeling. I also wrote about what type of energy I wanted to bring with me that day which really helped me to shift into a positive mood again.

Did you do your Artist Date this week? What did you do? How did it feel?

On Tuesday, I went on my first Artist Date and that was incredibly rejuvenating and fun. I’ve got another solo hike planned this week, too!

And on Wednesday this last week, Emily and I celebrated nine years together and five years married. We had a great night at this really cool sushi speakeasy. We arrived at this indoor putt-putt golf course, walked through the arcade, and then someone came out of a bookcase and invited us into the restaurant that seats only six people. It was a very special evening filled with great food and a memorable experience with strangers as we got to know each other more in such a small and intimate setting.

What were you surprised to find yourself writing about?

One of the key things I’m noticing in my Daily Pages is that on days when I am feeling overwhelmed and behind on tasks, my temptation is to shrug my shoulders and just mess around all day instead of doing the work. That’s the opposite of what I really want for myself, so it just goes to show how much we are prone to getting in our own way! Having this project and commitment has helped me to course correct though. Having the check-ins and having the goals and public accountability have really helped me stick to my self-commitments.

There are a couple of other things that I found surprising to see in my Pages.

The first was that I wrote how I want to go to an open mic night where I can read some of my poetry. I only have two poems I’ve written in the last year – quite short ones, too – and I have never had the thought to read them on a stage! But a new friend invited me to an open mic event that happens once per month. I said I would go in October. And I genuinely want to challenge myself to write something that would take me at least 3 minutes to read, and to “perform” my poetry at the next open mic night.

The other thing that surprised me was that I wrote twice last week that I feel very alive when I am teaching others about qigong, and I noted how it is sort of difficult to find qigong events or classes in Austin. Yoga and even breathwork classes are seemingly everywhere, but qigong is basically non-existent. I’ve had an idea for a few months to get certified as a qigong teacher, but in my Pages this last week, I was daydreaming about starting a business with multiple studios and making qigong as commonplace as yoga.

I’ve been practicing qigong for more than a year and have been teaching a short flow to friends at my Slow Second Saturday events each month. It is lighting something up in me. I’ll keep this in mind as I continue to explore my artistic taste. It seems that qigong is another thing that continues to emerge from the work. (The other thing was my love for storytelling using metaphors and symbolism.)

Were there any other issues this week that you consider significant for your recovery? Describe them.

Hosting my Slow Second Saturday gathering each month has been and continues to contribute to my creative recovery. By design, it’s meant to create space for us to be child-like and enjoy creating again. Doing this for myself has been important and fun, but the more I see others getting into qigong or their art – bringing their craft project or playing with my paints as they chat – the more I realize how healing it has been for me to offer this space to others, too.

I’ve hosted Slow Second Saturdays six times this year and it has been different every time. This month, because I was working on my re-creation of the Michael Jackson magazine cover, I had the opportunity to talk about what I was doing with 100 Liminal Days, and it led me to sharing more about some of the things I’ve been writing about here. And truthfully, I do feel like I’m recovering a sense of safety and identity through this process. I notice how much more confidently I am talking about what I like and what I want for my life and the world around me.

If I’m being honest, there are days in these first two weeks that have felt mundane. I’ve felt like what I’m writing is not interesting enough for myself, and certainly not for anyone else who is reading these. But as I’ve continued to follow the book/course and press myself further into the tasks, I am noticing subtle changes. That has been exciting to see and I continue to be curious about what else may unfold through this. Let’s keep going.

PS. I am leaving for a two-week trip to Europe later this week, and I’m planning on pausing my posts until I return so I can be fully present with family. (The goal to publish 100 posts by December 31st stays!) If you have been following my story and feeling a nudge to go through The Artist’s Way yourself, order the book and let’s do this together! You have a little time to get caught up while I’m away.

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