Are you looking to “tap-in” to your creative spirit’s full potential? Today’s Tap-In guest is a free-spirited individual, soulful artist, generous teacher, and author of the inspiring book Cultivating Your Creative Life — welcome, welcome to the lovely Alena Hennessy!…
What makes you feel most fully engaged with life?
Many things — and oftentimes it can be a build. For me it’s starting off my day right with a little breathwork, tea, yoga, meditation, good music, good coffee, breakfast, and then it unfolds. But really, when my heart is open and feeling love, admiring love, being love, from the beauty within to out, I know I am engaged with life in that moment.
What are some of your ideas on how people can share creative spirit?
From what I have witnessed, one of the most powerful ways is to come together in a workshop, class, or group and share our processes, our artwork, our challenges, our joys, and so forth. This setting has a sweet power that allows us to inspire, motivate, and encourage one another. Magical things happen from this kind of process.
What is the purpose of creative spirit? Do you think it is a collective force?
Wow — amazing question. I’ll have to ponder this…
In my feeling, one of the purposes of creative spirit is to express the unique qualities of each individual soul and channel the flow of life; the force behind the fuse that makes things grow and breathe together in an interconnected web that is alive. So yes, I do think it is a collective force. The collective subconscious in my understanding is alive and well, and we are all working at making it come together in a more conscious fashion, through our diverse expression. In my online workshop that is now open for registration through Squam, we really explore this, and I can tell you it’s just awesome.
Tell us about the seeds of your unique, artistic approach to life.
I don’t know if it’s unique, but I like to work through intuition. I am inspired by the elements of art, color/line combinations, simplicity, animals, movements … I had an article written about me once entitled “Wild Child” — I do have that free spirit nature, but really I like to ground things in reality and manifest them in ways that feel true, do-able, and intuitive to me.
What is your favorite mode of self-expression? If you have more than one, do you find that they intermingle and intertwine as you create? If so, tell us about this.
In so many ways, endless ways I am finding. Through collage, India ink, writing, photography, dance, old papers, new papers, paint, watercolor pencil… I want to experiment with it all. So yes, I am finding that they intermingle and intertwine more and more as I grow creatively.
Do you have any life mottos? Any pieces of wisdom to share with us?
True happiness and peace lie within. Let go, understand, and fulfill it on the inside and it will reflect on the outside.
Do you have any advice on how to connect to creative spirit within?
Ahhh I have many ways! You should sign up for my ecourse for more of that too. There is a lot to share in this regard.
What does letting go look like to you?
Letting go looks like allowing forgiveness for yourself and others to take place and to create more room within yourself. To fully accept the present moment and to trust the process. Letting go means liberation, it means loving yourself enough to give yourself permission for peace in this moment.
What do you love?
I love things that are simple and true. I love honesty, I love kindness, I love beauty. I love things that unexpectedly move my heart open. The true nature of love is unconditional, it loves because it is love and it knows nothing else, it is as natural as the turning tides, the rising sun, the birds that fly free, the smile of a child. Things like this I love.
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