CREATIVE CORNER COLUMN SUMMER 2011 - By Autumn Boyet-Stinton (Original Article Written for Love Your Life Magazine)

Sing it with me: “Summertime!  Summertime!  Sum, Sum, Summertime!”   Tis’ the season of long days and short nights.  As our planet leans in and gets reacquainted with the sun, we have the opportunity to lean in and reacquaint ourselves with our inner creative beings. 

As a child, I anxiously awaited the beginning of summer break.  Summer meant a release from a schedule, family vacation, shorts and tank tops, bare feet, tree forts, popsicles, running through the sprinkler, fireflies, sleep-overs, and what we called “star gazing” – which was dragging a sleeping bag to the front yard and falling asleep gazing up at the stars.  It isn't difficult for me to conjure up memories of wild abandon associated with the summer months of my childhood.  Those long lost summer days hang thick in my memory, fragrant with the smell of jolly ranchers, the warm earth of mom’s garden, camp fires and the sweet smell of jasmine and lilies floating on a warm evening breeze.  I can close my eyes and almost hear the sound of the screen door slamming as we ran in and out, followed of course, by my mother’s stern warning, “If you slam that door one more time”…  Summer gave us an opportunity to recharge and reconnect with the simplest of pleasures.  Summer was about freedom and the release of constraint. 

Now, here’s the great news.  Summer isn't’t just for children.  Summer is for everyone!   The warm rays of the sun bathe young and old alike.  Summer never plays favorites.  You too can recharge, relax and enjoy the season with child-like abandon!  All you have to do is let go and go with the flow.  With the release of self-imposed constraint comes flow.  And as we all know, creativity is all about flow! 

So, as your summer plans begin to take shape, I challenge you Dear Creative Reader to nourish your creativity and see what grows!  Try these simple suggestions that will help release your creative inhibitions: 

1. Keep a simple summer word journal – Every day jot down a handful of descriptive words that create of picture of your day.  No sentences, just single words.  
2. Adjust your perspective – View ordinary things from a new vantage point.  Climb a tree, lie in the grass, walk into a room backwards.  It doesn't have to be a big change, just a change. 
3. Release your inhibitions – Embrace the impractical.  Run through the sprinkler with your work clothes on, eat a piece of cake with your hands, stop at the park you pass every day and go down the slide.  Do something outside you comfort zone.
4. Embrace your silly side – Sing out loud at the top of your lungs, play a game of rock, paper, scissors to make a common everyday choice, or try skipping instead of walking.      

These simple adjustments may seem trivial, but a slightly altered view of your everyday world may incite more than you anticipate.  Be open to the delights of the season and let summer work her invigorating magic.  And if all else fails, LET GO, RE-CHARGE, RELAX, HAVE FUN and EMBRACE SUMMER  - just because!