Human Beings have a gap—between who we think we are and who we really are. Closing the gap is where being awake is. (Natalie Goldberg, The True Secret of Writing)

A few weeks ago, I wasn’t writing like this.  Until yesterday, I haven’t been painting like this. There is something alive in me that was sleeping, resting, “om-ing” in some other dimension. Now it’s awake. And I hope that reading this, you will feel something stirring, if that thing isn’t already hopping in you. The athlete. The writer. The painter. The chef. The designer. The life coach. The entrepreneur. The philanthropist.

And now I give you a gift that will take 19 minutes and 32 seconds of your life to enjoy. It’s Elizabeth Gilbert’s TED.com talk on “Your elusive creative genius.” It’s funny, it’s got history, love, Tom Waits and the most splendid story about one of my favorite poets: Ruth Stone.  Put it on while you do the dishes, pick this over TV, you can just listen.  Or take a real lunch break today at work, for at least 19 minutes and 32 seconds.  It’s worth it.

http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

Pictured below: “Be Sure” painting by Rebecca Villarreal (4/3/13). Acrylic, oil pastel and mosaic.

Underneath the final painting, the words: “What they say is true and Are you sure and yes and Be Sure”