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Think outside the box! I believe all of us are far more capable of creating than we ever dreamt possible. Do you think you don’t have any talent? Hah! Every one of us has it. I believe it is God-given, and is only waiting to be developed.

Why not give it a try? There is nothing to lose by picking up a pencil and doing a little sketching, or sitting down at the computer and writing your memoirs. The possibilities are so endless. How about redesigning your bedroom? Writing a cookbook? Starting a garden? All of the above! If you can dream about it, you can do it.

Here’s another one that I highly recommend: Start writing your own blog! It is easy, fun and you can develop your writing skills.

How many times have I heard this complaint? After a little investigation, it usually turns out that the complainer has never really tried anything involving creativity. “Oh, I can’t even draw a straight line!”

As my artist mother used to say, “Use a ruler!” Creativity has nothing to do with drawing straight or curved lines. It has everything to do with self-expression, and the ability to see what is in front of you. We are humans, capable of great works of art, creating delicious banquets, and solving the riddles of the Universe. But the first step is to try.

If you have been told you can’t draw, carry a tune, bake a decent meal and so on, I would like you to prove those naysayers wrong, for once and all. It may take time and patience to turn the tide of self-negation, but it can be done!

Check a book out of the library with simple steps towards creating your first….anything! The best place to start is exactly where you are right now.

Time to make your holiday gifts! With the holidays a little over a month away, it’s time to make a trip to Michael’s or your local craft store and get some inspiration. Why not make all your gifts this year? I’ve done this for many seasons, and think it’s a great way to experience your inner artist. Your children and grandchildren will love you for it, and the presents you give will be so much more meaningful.

If glue, paper and beads just aren’t your thing, then bake goodies that can be enjoyed by your clan. One young lady in my family collects holiday tins from the thrift store, carefully washes them, and fills them with homemade cookies for everyone in the family. This is a tradition everyone looks forward to, especially her children.

Have an old fashioned and loving holiday season, and start it right now!

You can set a great example for your children and grandchildren by being creative yourself. I grew up in a family where both my parents worked as artists. Their own love of creating was the best gift my parents could have given me. From that early experience, I decided that being an artist was not only a viable career choice, but that it was an important one.

I worry about the public school system today, with the creative arts getting short shrift. I believe that learning to paint or play an instrument is equally important to becoming a whiz in math or science. Did I say equally? Well, that’s not quite right. It is way MORE important to create.

If you think your child is more intellectual than artistic, or worse, he has no “talent,” then think again. Creativity is part of the human condition, and we all deserve to indulge in it. It can be a full-time career or a part time hobby. And let me ask you this, was Einstein creative?

It’s not too early to start thinking about homemade Christmas gifts. Think you have no talent, think everyone else is more creative than you? Think again! We all have the gift to create, and there is no better time to use it than now. Not only that, if you need to learn a skill in order to make something (hand-crafted tree ornaments, cookie making and so forth) there’s still lots of time to work on it. Hone your skills now, and by November you can go to town on your Christmas gift list.

You may say time is a problem. Well, try turning off the TV! But in truth, that may not even be necessary. You can crochet while you watch your favorite show. I’m not big on television, but I have no trouble listening to music while I write, paint or cook. Whatever you do, make sure it’s just as fun for you to make as it will be for your loved ones to receive. This is a great way to save money and express yourself at the same time!

I’ve noticed a certain nervousness some parents have around their children, especially when said child is being particularly creative. “Mommy, there’s a fairy in the back yard!” I heard one exuberant young lady of five years announce to her mother the other day. It was rewarding to see this young mother return her excitement, without a hint of a lecture on “that’s just your imagination.”

Children should be allowed their creativity, without parental correction or worse, the intervention of psychiatric drugging to “adjust” them. I’ve often thought that were psych drugs like Ritalin around when I was a child, I would’ve been the perfect candidate for their application. Extremely active and wildly creative, my profile would surely have matched some of the phony psychiatric labeling so prevalent today.

If you have a child you think is ADD or ADHD, think about adjusting his or her diet, cutting out the sugar and soft drinks, and turning off the television. There are many alternatives out there to harmful, addictive and potentially fatal psychiatric drugs.

This is my hobby horse for the week!

Surprise yourself! And be a celebrity in your child or grandchild’s eyes as well. Try writing and even illustrating a story that stars a young person. It can be silly, magical or scary (if the child is old enough.)

You don’t have to be an award-winning author or artist to make something that will be treasured for generations to come. I did this recently, and the little one in question must consider it her favorite book of all time. At least I get asked to read it whenever I’m babysitting, and she seems to have memorized the entire thing!

This should be a time of rediscovering the important things in life, and that includes the love in your family, and the treasure that our children truly are, both for us and for the future of mankind. Show them how important they are, and they will strive to live up to it.

I’m not particularly materialistic, but once in a while there’s something I would love to own. My particular love? Handcrafted Gold Jewelry .

You may have something you would love to own for yourself, but have the idea that it is forever out of your reach. Well, I have a theory about that. If there’s something you’d love to have, there is a way for that to happen. Really! Maybe it involves sacrificing something in some other area of your life, but it can be done, and I encourage you to do it!

It can be personally empowering to accomplish that which at first glance seems insurmountable. What better way to start realizing your dreams than by figuring out a way to reach a personal, pleasurable goal for yourself?

Do you have a summer garden? One of my favorite things is to gather the fruits of my labor for a gorgeous, healthy, vitamin-rich salad. Nature is beautiful without even trying! Think of all the stunning still life paintings of apples, pears and so forth. When I create either a fruit salad or a vegetable salad it always reminds me of the old masters.

Think of your life in terms of art and become aware of all the beauty surrounding you. One of the differences between artists and the rest of mankind is that artists have the ability to look at things from their own universes. All of us have this ability. My advice is to turn off the television and turn on your own perceptions. Try it and see!

I love supporting indigenous Latin American artists . Our neighbors south of the border have among them some very talented people. When we can support them by purchasing hand-crafted work, I’m for it every time. I think this should be the true “global economy.” I’d rather pay a woman in Bolivia money for a beautifully crafted scarf, than pay a Chinese factory for some dubious (possibly lead-tainted) buttons.

Not that there aren’t talented craftspeople in China, too! It isn’t the people there I’m opposed to; it’s the do-anything-to-make-a-buck mentality of big factories, even at the expense of the people who work in them. If we all took the time to discover the origin of what we purchase, consumable or not, our planet could be propelled forward in the right direction.