Restorative Art

I don’t know about you, but I am exhausted–the kind of tired that saturates and no amount of sleep seems to replenish. This isn’t the first time I find myself here. I am a veteran of this feeling, and historically I would push through moments such as this. But I am getting older (and with age supposedly comes wisdom or just the knowledge that grind leads to illness and injury that is increasingly harder to recover from). Instead, I force myself to be still. And the only way I can truly stay inert is if I have an activity. Yes, I see the irony of this statement but bear with me.

Free-styling it with embroidery is its own kind of art.

This can’t be just any kind of activity. It can’t be psychologically, cognitively, or physically intensive. It must be meditative and therefore restorative.

In this instance I am drawn to embroidery, something I haven’t done for decades and risks me looking even older than the aforementioned statement above. In similar scenarios I have reached for knitting, crochet, and beading. 

Before you knock it, try it!

I believe our ancestors, often housebound particularly during colder months, turned to these beautiful acts of domesticity for a reason. They are most certainly creative and artistic, but their repetitive practice also occupies that part of the brain that tends to churn and brood, further exhausting you. It is also a way to force stillness (with a small warning to remember to shift position or relax your neck from any strange angle. Also remember to rest your wrists periodically or you will suffer from RSI). 

I am by no means an expert on these forms of expression (with knitting I frequently lose count and forget perl or knit, and with embroidery I get bored with patterns so always go off script) but feeling the silk or wool in my fingers brings such a tactile pleasure reminiscent of childhood. This is a simple pleasure with no other purpose to being pretty and a little mindless. It can also be done in front of a tv if you wish or my favorite, some nice music. 

Your mind will stop in no time giving you that much needed vacation.

So if you too are bone tired, I implore you to try something creatively soothing. Maybe play with thread.