Grief And Creativity / Happenings In The Outhouse 29-Jan-2021

Throughout 2020, so many people rallied about how much 2020 sucked.  I'm not disagreeing with them.  But as I've stated before, this seems to be the theme every single year.  So stop calling 2020 a dumpster fire--your mindset is a dumpster fire.  You just need to put out the fire.  True, 2020 had some troubling moments with the pandemic and all, but we've rallied before and won.  Keep your heart where it's supposed to be.

That being said, I want to discuss creativity and grief.  More specifically when it comes to the creative process, but it can also bleed over into other areas of your life too.  I've touched on this before, last year.  Here is a blog post from last year.

I am a huge fan of Weird Al Yankovic, and have been since I was a kid.  So when the opportunity came for me to see him in concert, at the Chester Fritz Auditorium, on April 12, 2004, I jumped at the chance.  But something tragic happened on April 9: Weird Al's parents died in an accidental carbon monoxide incident at their home.

My heart went out to him as I knew my hopes of seeing him live were dashed.  But much to my surprise, the show went on.  He did a beautiful tribute to them in the middle of the concert.  It was an amazing show.

Years later, I read about how he dealt with his parents sudden passing.  Instead of cancelling any shows, including the night it happened, he went on.  And I must say, if there was any misstep in his performance, I certainly didn't see it.  The show was incredible.

Grief can take a toll on creativity.  I've been there, got the T-shirt, and then some.

Any form of stress can take a toll on creativity.  Not denying that.  But there are times when your creativity is the perfect outlet to help you along.  And if you can't, that's okay too.  Take a break.  Focus on something else for a while.

It's okay to grieve.  There is no timeline on it.