Inspiration for a joyful and creative life

I had the most delightful day yesterday.  There wasn’t a big event.  There wasn’t even a special occasion.

It was an ordinary day that brought me so much pleasure.

I got up early to work on my drawing and went to my Colored Pencil class at the Botanic Gardens.

We are working on this fun drawing with 4 different vegetables in small squares.  I’ll post pictures of it when it’s finished.  It is taking me hours to layer each color to get the depth and richness but I get lost in the process and time goes by so quickly.

After my class, I strolled through the gardens looking for a shady spot to eat my lunch.

Everywhere I looked, I encountered something that beckoned me to photograph it.

Since I’ve been working on drawing lately, I am noticing even more details than usual; the variance of color, wonderful textures and shapes.

I kept finding inspiring things to photograph, even as I left the gardens.

On my way to run errands, I decided to stop at one of my favorite flower and gift shops, Happy Canyon Flowers, just to see their beautiful displays.  I wasn’t disappointed.

I needed a few groceries and went to Whole Foods.  I wanted to pick up a couple more “specimens” to draw for my project and got a whole new appreciation for picking out fruits and vegetables!

Instead of enjoying just the idea of eating the produce, I was looking at it in terms of drawing them.  I carefully selected things based on their beautiful color and form, quirky little stems, etc.

As I continued with a couple more errands, I found myself appreciating everything and smiling.

My last stop was the library to return a book and pick up my next read for book group.  I decided to check out their drawing section.

They didn’t have a great selection of drawing books but instead I found a stack of really cool books on metal projects.  I couldn’t help myself and checked out a big stack of books to take home and peruse.

So, while this may have been an ordinary day, I found myself filled with inspiration at every turn.  I felt a great sense of satisfaction and gratitude.

That is what brought me such delight.

What little things or experiences can you bring to your day that would bring you that sense of joy?

I picked up some of these fun cards with great quotes at Patina Antiques , a wonderful unique shop in Greenwood Village, Colorado when I was out with a friend.  I just love this quote.

One of the secrets to a happy life is continuous small treats.

How can you treat yourself and others with small little joys?

Your answer to this question may depend on your definition of success.  My answer is that I want both!  My definition of success is to feel happy, fulfilled, and to enjoy life as much as possible.

Since that is important to me, I make a choice to work on it and make small changes that successfully move me toward the ultimate goal……being happy.

It is definitely something that you work on from the inside out and it doesn’t always come naturally.  It is really easy to get caught up in the day to day busyness of life or what you think others expect.

If you really start to pay attention to what you want and what will make you happy and deeply satisfied, using your own intuition, you can begin to make choices to enjoy your own personal success.

One of my missions is to help others be more creative and happier.  They go hand in hand for me.  I love to discover and find things that will help me and others to more easily enjoy life.

I’m so excited to share a simple system I created called Simplify Your Success.  It helps you to pay attention to what’s working, tap into your intuition, and focus on positive solutions to make things easier to accomplish what matters to you.

I love sharing things that have worked for me.  It is simple, yet powerful and effective.

Click here if you would like to know more about it.