A Creative Mindset in Dark Times
We hear, see, or are personally affected by natural disasters yearly. Even if we only watch the terrible images of earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding, and wildfires, they affect us. On a screen, we witness the heartache of the victims who have lost loved ones and/or everything they own. The mementos of their lives were suddenly gone.
The haunting images of the homeless survivors of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina or Hawaii fires are still ongoing because their recovery has not been resolved. Our hearts go out to them, yet there is a presence of guilt as I watch in disbelief and sadness from the comfort of my chair. Over this past week, the fires in California have overloaded my sensory information.
In Psychology Today's article entitled “Three Habits for Sustaining Your Creativity in Dark Times,” Jeffry Davis, M.A. writes, "Our brains are bombarded with horrific images.”
Lately, it is very accurate, and that is in the United States; what about the rest of the world? There are plenty of ‘horrific images’ for all of us to become mentally unhealthy with the media advantage of “doom-scrolling.” Davis also states that research on doomscrolling determines this activity creates a “mental depletion” when one sees devastation.
I am not doomscrolling, but the news reports this past week on television pulled me out of my studio to watch. The images and stories of victims left me without creativity, and I had no willpower to close the door.
If I am writing, can I tap into empathy? If I am painting, can I focus on creating artwork pleasing to the eye and hopeful to the heart? If I turn off the news, am I being insensitive to the plight of these victims?
Not a single person can change these events, but we can find strength in the faith of those who have been through it. One story I heard was despite losing all her possessions, the one loss a mother grieved was her children’s artwork.
Davis encourages three habits for artists to “determine what is meaningful in the dark times, define what is essential in following media, and restrict how much news or media you watch.”
As creative people, we can soothe others with art, music, literature, stitching, baking, sculpting, and the countless other ways we create. Art, in the broad sense, provides healing to humanity, as it has done for centuries.
However, being mindful of the plight of others and having a crushing creative spirit can turn our empathy into giving in some way. There are ways we can all help by donating to organizations to provide relief for disasters. Recently and in the past, efforts have been ongoing. As minor as it may feel, what little we can donate adds up, and together, we won’t forget there are still needs for Hurricane Milton and Helene and other disasters, as well as the current wildfires in California.
Here are a few ways to give; please join me in donating:
