Sixth sense
Noticing and creating with our sixth sense and a nudge from nature
Hello, I’m Rachel. I write about nature and creativity to encourage connection and wellbeing.
Today’s post includes all the things I write about; noticing, creating and connecting with nature and ourselves.
Our sixth sense? Intuition? Tuning into ourselves and the world? Do you listen to your sixth sense? Does it help you? Does it take work to understand it?
The sixth day of
’s Summer writing sanctuary led us on a walking meditation to listen to the part of us we often ignore. (go back to previous posts to read about the other senses)I wasn’t sure at first, usually just seeing a prompt nudges ideas into my conscious mind. But this took a bit longer, the threads of Beth’s words unspooling in my mind. I needed to let them in and pause long enough to let my sixth sense be heard.
Rain and time constraints meant I did the walking meditation as circuits of my tiny living room. With each turn of the room, each nudge from Beth to slow down, my mind settled. And without intending to, noticing and creating also came in as well as thoughts.
After a while, I noticed the crab apple tree swaying in the wind just outside my window. AI noticed a particular leaf in the shape of a heart. Each circle I walked I came back to that heart.
My sixth sense spoke up, it put together the pieces that have been surfacing in the last few months. For a long time my sixth sense has got tangled up in fear. Maybe it was trying to protect me? It was scared, only noticing danger, difference, feeling utterly without a safety net. Even though what I needed was friendship and community it kept me shuttered. Maybe it thought it was keeping me safe, but in reality, it narrowed my world.
As I walked, I noticed more hearts, the string of hearts plant on my mantlepiece, the hearts in a painting on my wall.
Maybe the fear wasn’t my true sixth sense, or maybe a deeper sixth sense finally pushed the fear aside, a deep comforting glow inside me saying that the world can be ok, it can be safe, that I can do this.
This true sixth sense has given me the strength to reach out. To go back to therapy, to have deep conversations, to see friends, to let in the friends that offered support and to make new ones.
I am that crab apple branch of heart shaped leaves. Those hearts are the tools I’ve gathered along the way, but also my friends. And as the crab apple grows new leaves, I’m developing more tools and nurturing my connections. When I feel wobbly or alone, I can try and tap into my true sixth sense, not the fear.
As I walked round in circles, noticing the hearts and letting my sixth sense lead, it woke up my creative brain, images popped up with the thoughts. My art is nearly always inspired by nature, but this time my sixth sense wanted a place on the paper. The art would be a reminder to listen to the comforting glow, not the tangled fear.
And so, after a few scribbled notes in my journal to capture all that arose in my walk, I swapped it for my sketchbook.
The idea had arrived almost fully formed, but given I’m still developing my techniques, it’s taken a few iterations to get to a painting I’m happy with, that carries the message from my sixth sense.
This often happens, I’m rarely happy with a piece of art straight off unless it’s been a happy accident during a play session. If I have a clear idea, it takes lot of paper to get to the point it matches what is in my head. Or I have to let go of what is in my head as unachievable or unworkable, or that what I’ve actually created works better. Does this make any sense!?
And so - in the spirit of sharing and being open with my creativity - here are the various iterations it went through.
The indigo ink structure arrived straight away and stuck all the way through. It was then whether to add colour, which colour and where, which has taken lots more attempts. Maybe I wanted the glow of the pink and gold to represent the internal glow of my sixth sense?
Then, after a comment on here (I’d put some of the ideas on notes), I thought about whether to do a whole branch of hearts (which fitted with the inceptions of the idea more, or just a single larger leaf, the first leaf I noticed? So many decisions for one painting!!
And I haven’t yet fully settled on that, but I have decided on just the indigo, not adding any colour. I do like the idea of the added colour, but I don’t have the artistic skill or brain power at the moment to make it look like it is in my head!
So there is the full journey of a painting, from the birth of the idea during a walking meditation, to the final piece. In this case, a painting that is full of meaning to remind me of my inner comforting sixth sense.
Thank you for reading, a little insight into my soul as well as my creative process.
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Lovely...like jewellery somehow?
wowowow so goooood! I just want to keep staring at them. Thank you for documenting and sharing.