"I ain't got no cabin in the woods..."

The excruciating pain of creating in open spaces...

​Spare me your grammatical judgment! I’m not angry. I’m not even frustrated or confused. I am…busy at work! During an interview earlier this year, an artist told me that they went away to work on their now released new album. Pretty cool, huh? It’s quite common in the creative community for artists to become a recluse and ‘disappear’ as they create. It’s the cool thing to do, to emerge with a masterpiece after noticeable time away.
 
Even if the masterpiece is only viewed as such by the artist, the process of creating in that space is second to none. So, what about creatives with no creative space? What about those without the benefit of silence amidst life’s noise? They, we…me seem a little mixed up!
 
Deadlines are missed, projects are unfinished and well…people don’t know what to think! In fact, it looks as bad as what people’s imagination can muster up! Mystery becomes the main ingredient for a creative creating with creative space. This goes beyond having a quiet writing space or studio to play or record vocals.
 
That proverbial cabin in the woods is a respite. You get to be messy there, unkempt…vulnerable without judgment. In the cabin in the woods, you’re there alone mainly because house guests are disruptive to the creative process. But what about the creative without the privilege of clandestine conception?
 
We have to hold it together and keep working. Of all the things in our hands, our work-life balance can never succumb to our creativity. Can you imagine trying to create a cabin on main street?
 
Most people can’t, but there are creatives out there who can testify to just how moronic such a thing could be. With that in mind, I can confess that I have been creating with no cabin in the woods!
 
Yep, I’ve been distant. I’ve been checked out so to speak. Assignments are piling up on my desk…well, they’re already piled up on my desk. And, I have to go back as far as almost two months to try and catch up with phone calls and emails.
 
It’s not frustrating, infuriating, or overwhelming. It’s actually exciting! One day, I’ll have that cabin in the woods experience, but this go-round has been without it. What I love is the process. The late nights, early mornings, the metamorphosis…I’m changing!
 
Normally, the person that emerges from the cabin is completely different. They’re rejuvenated, refueled and ready to share in the new season following a hibernation of sorts. But this has been more like a cocoon. You can see the shape of the caterpillar in the chrysalis but only once the transformation is complete can you behold the beauty of the ornate creation that emerges.
 
So yeah, you see me but you don’t! I know this has been hard on my colleagues and even readers and listeners, but I have an assignment that must be completed in time! 

In order to be able to become a butterfly, the caterpillar has to fall apart completely, decompose
​down to its very essence,
devoid of any shape or consciousness.
It literally dies. There is nothing left of it. - Kirstin Vanlierde

Read her full article: “Chrysalis -- or why the caterpillar must die” here. 

 The transformation doesn’t stop at the midway point and neither can I! What will emerge is sure to look differently for my company, my family and myself. Just wait…! I felt like I needed to share this because I’ve been distant and not quite ‘myself’ for a while now only because, I’m getting fitted for my new wings! 
-Fred