What Lurks Below

Picture This. You are standing knee deep in warm tropical water on some island in the Pacific. The water is crystal clear as you look down and see the spectrum of vibrant colors below. There are exotic fish in colors of orange, neon blue and bright yellow. After darting back and forth they disappear in the brightly colored coral scattered at our feet. Everything is luminescent as light shines through the dancing layers of sea water. The feeling experienced is exhilaration because of a connection with the habitat surrounding you. Compare this scenario to standing in a swamp somewhere in the Amazon Rain Forest. Here, the temperature is hot and sticky with large buzzing mosquitoes all about. The water you are standing in can only be described as opaque and murky. The sediment on the bottom is churned as you make your way through the mud. What’s scary is that you have no idea what you are stepping on because, unlike the tropics, you cannot see bottom. This metaphor is presented as an example of the mind when it is clear, bright and creative and when our talent is veiled by emotions that are out of balance. When focused our creativity is open and transparent. Thought flows like schools of darting fish unconcerned by any predator nearby. Lightness leads way to inspiration and joy. When darkness pervades the mind there is always the potential for negative thoughts lurking below to sabotage our ambitions. Although it’s natural to go through these cycles of light and dark periods it’s important to recognize how we feel when lightness predominates. We get inspired by positive thoughts when our mind is clear.  Our creativity, as potential, is expressed when we allow it to come forth.  All art is feeling. That warm, wonderful feeling experienced by wading in the clear water is but a reflection of the clarity that awaits us when we choose not to walk through the muck that blocks our creativity and derails our goals.