Adapted from an Instagram post @jayseesee
A couple week’s ago, I was hanging out with some friends from back in the day. We hadn’t seen each other in years. One of them asked,”Who’s your greatest creative influence for your poetry?”
After giving it some thought I replied, “I am my greatest influence.“
But I didn’t mean that to be egotistical or anything. I simply appreciate myself, my life, and the beautiful moments that cross my path – even the ones that hurt.
Everything that enters my life instantly becomes influential. Whether that’s other poets, theatre, movies, paintings, nature, strangers, or friends, I allow myself to accept them as influences.
I’ve learned to be receptive of everything’s existence in my atmosphere.
Think about it. How often do you jump in your car / on transit / walk out your door and proceed to turn on autopilot. “I just need to get to my destination” is often the mindset we impose on ourselves.
This doesn’t allow for instances of influence – or even confluence – to appreciate and see the beauty in each waking moment.
Strangers on the sidewalk, the rustling wind, the snow covered trees, dancers hitting the beat, drivers zigzagging through traffic can all become great influences. They’re all are great metaphors for a beating heart.
It’s in these moments that I find the human truths necessary for all my creative work. I can only do my copywriting and poetry by leveraging such truths.
Then again, sometimes they’re simply profound points of great reflection.
But ultimately, they’re reminders. They’re reminders of what it means to be alive and the dynamics of life.
But to get to this point, I must have worked on myself; opening and influencing myself towards positivity.
Self-work must come before
making life work.
If I didn’t work on myself, I’d fixate only on the problem of things. At one time in my life, I was only focussed on the negativity in the world. I was miserable, anxious, and my all-around mental health was in a disarray.
There’s an expression going around the internet, of which I have no idea with whom it originates (Google it, you’ll see everyone and their granny saying it),
“The world is a reflection of how we see ourselves.”
Through introspective reflection, one can come to the realization that there isn’t a reason to be a mad, jealous, or hold ill will. Because we have the fortune to experience life in a unique way. Plus, my ancestors went through so much to get me here. I tell myself that “I can’t let them down. I’m only here because of them.”
By practicing gratitude, we can also start to feel empathy towards others. Ask ourselves why individuals my act or think in specific wavelengths.
Is life always fair? No. But you’re surviving through it all – and that’s a pretty beautiful feat.
Its taken me years to find peace. But now I realize that life is just one big endless wander.
I appreciate what it means to roam. But it wasn’t built in a day. Now I understand that the journey is beautiful.
– JCC
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