Mentoring - inspiration

Spark

The flash that sets an idea in motion comes of its own choosing. The fodder that feeds it and the flint from which it jumps are all preparations we can make. The wayward path ideas take to form in us is one the requires general support. The people we point to as being the most creative are often at the extremes of creative action being constantly plunged in the labor they love or locked in periods of procrastination. Both provide food for the spark. The moment that acts as the flint struck to ignite action takes practice to refine and know. Constant practice, necessary to excel, sharpens the tools in hand and explores the possible within the active mind. Procrastination throws the burden of form on the subconscious. The fragments of the idea bounce among the activities in which we partake until they find a core to collect and solidify around, dust high above a mental earth collecting ice crystals in our reflection clouds before setting form and falling to our conscious floor.

Flame

The support we receive from others can come in several fluid forms. Mentors can actively guide the pieces they witness carrying over in several areas. These can hold weight directly to the tasks at hand or foundationally on the expressions being pursued. A trend of upbringing, hometown support, and origins in general can encompass broad areas of influence as well as the universal quest of becoming. How we help others reflect on their relationship with where they come from is paramount to continuous long term development. This growth is not always visibly forward in the direction we feel we should move, often we are at odds with the reflection seen. Joining in a range of activities helps expand the well we draw from for inspiration. Choosing activities that extend us out of where we feel comfortable helps strengthen and expand what we can do when our creative muscles are flexed, especially at length. A season filled with physically active engagements, such as going to batting cages on weekends, would be complemented by a time of reflection or still expression, such as ceramics or painting. Joining in these activities alongside a mentor will improve the quality and variety of materials that make creativity shine.

Illumination

The kind of energy we express in our creativity too varies. The allusions to snow and flames both elucidate forms of creative expression possible and are telling of the kinds of relationships the energy we share can have with those receiving the message. Calm and cool or warm and motive, both bring us closer to ideas expressed yet vary the path taken. Whether we move rapidly or take a scenic route we pull from the same kinds of emotions. The kinds of activities we engage in as we let our minds work and idea fragments marinate consolidate what we are working to express in ways we do not know clearly. The role a mentor can play in providing a background for understanding what is flowing in us deep beneath the surface is valuable to the creative development of both mentor and mentee.