the creative minimalist

Darren

Imbolc: Creative New Starts

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Imbolc creative new starts with picture of a single bluebell and myself

January has been a difficult month for this creative minimalist. However, the festival of Imbolc is as good a time as any to make a creative new start. This week’s vlog explores recent creative highs and lows.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

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My current journal set-up

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my current journal set-up 2025 text over desk with journals

Hello worlds! As we kick off the New Year of 2025, I thought it would be fun to share my journal collection with you all. I’ve got my brand-new daily planner, music and fiction journals, and a bunch of vocab books. This week’s vlog shares my current journal set-up. What are your favourite journals?

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

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Odyssey my word of the year 2025

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An image of the word Odyssey and the text 2025 on a black background

My word for 2025 is Odyssey. It is a guiding word, something to meditate on during the dismal grey days of February, or the oppressive heat of June. I believe this provides the perfect balance between a dedicated journey with purpose alongside the very real distractions of living and being.

Odyssey
noun
a long and eventful or adventurous journey or experience:
journey, voyage, trek, travels, quest, crusade, pilgrimage, wandering, journeying;

It doesn’t limit itself to the self-development or spiritual growth of a pilgrimage but can encompass it. It is a me sort of word, with multiple meanings and aspects around a theme.

Of course, one can’t truly think of the word “odyssey” without a brief mention of Homer’s renowned classic. I find the Wikipedia entry on the poem’s themes particularly insightful.

> Crucial themes in the poem include the ideas of nostos (νόστος; ‘return’), wandering, xenia (ξενία; ‘guest-friendship’), testing, and omen

Or, a journey to a place, without a set course, with friends, family and others, a journey that will test my skills and abilities, and provide moments of spiritual contemplation and revelation.

On a more practical note, this odyssey will involve music making, digital and traditional art, multimedia, lots of learning and looking after my physical health.

I’ll share more as the year passes. I have been working on 25 goals/habits for 2025. The first and primary one is to vlog/blog each week, so I’ll have plenty of opportunities to let you know how things are going.

In the meantime, I have to do some preparation work for January. I still can’t believe we’ve spent another year in orbit around our star. I hope and pray that it was a good one for you, and may 2025 bring blessings to you all.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

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Perfectionism destroys creativity

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Perfectionism destroys creativity text with a picture of me in an art studio

Hello worlds! I found myself thinking about how it is perfectionism created by myself, which, ironically, destroys my creativity. This week’s vlog examines how I must embrace the unknown and let creativity flow.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

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Rewilding my Imagination and Creativity

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Rewilding my imagination and creativity text with an image of darrenrhill in front of a wild jungle

Hello worlds! I have found myself in a creative rut, my creativity has become automated and feels unnatural. This week’s vlog is all about beginning to rewild my imagination and creativity.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

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We’re not actors music video

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We're not actors music video screen shot. Black and white me on a TV screen in a derelict room.

Hello worlds! I made a video for my song “We’re not Actors” from the album “The Same Old Fear”. You can listen to the music on all streaming platforms. If you like it give it a thumbs up and subscribe and add to playlists etc.

Lyrics:

We stumble together, so sure yet insecure
We’re diamonds from dust, the pressure’s mounting, these steps the cure
I’ll quote Murakami, something from Kafka on the Shore, 
It’s just a diversion because I know there’s something more
But the light is too bright, I shake I’m under the spotlight

We’re not actors
We’re not film stars
We’re not filters
Image captures

We dance without routine, these steps ancient and worn
A ballet of passion, the step’s quickening, new rhythm born
You whisper the lyrics in this new context they’re alive 
We feel beyond meaning for this act was divined
The light shining bright, we shake, and dance in the spotlight

We’re not actors
We’re not film stars
We’re not filters
Image captures

We’re not actors
We’re not film stars
We’re not filters
Image captured

We’re not avatars
We’re not film stars
We’re not filtered
Just distractions

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

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