3/24/2016 0 Comments Creativity and Letting GoWeek in Review: 3.18.16-3.24.16To me the word LEGO means a lot. I wrote in January about the actual meaning of the word LEGO but I'll repeat it here. From Lego.com: "The name 'LEGO' is an abbreviation of the two Danish words 'leg godt', meaning 'play well'." I love that meaning and to me it emphasizes a major theme I am working on this year (thus one of the reasons for having created a magical play creative workshop series to encourage others to join in). But the word LEGO also means more to me. The picture above is from my courage cork board and I liked how I could use the letters of LEGO with the addition of only a few letters to mean a few other themes as well. LEtGO and LEtGOd. LEtGO. To me playing is letting go. It's letting go of thinking I should be doing something more productive with my time. Stuart Brown, the author of the book Play, has some principles of what play is, and one of them is that you lose track of time because you become so involved in what you are doing. To me that is truly letting go. You are in the moment, you are not thinking about the past or future. Embracing the present is huge and hard and meditation and playing are things I am doing to keep working on that this year. It was actually on a last week's creation (day 77), and I shared a few thoughts about it on instagram then, but I think its worth saying again here as it speaks to how play can help with letting go. On that day I said my brain was pretty done from a full day and to be honest, I just wanted to get the creation of the day done as quickly as possible. But what I found, was that by trying to rush it and make something happen quickly, nothing was happening. I wasn't playing, I was trying to do and be productive. And that's when I thought about an interaction I had seen at Brickfest with a child and his mother. He was building a pyramid out of single brick pieces and she thought it was taking too long and started to try and help him to finish it faster. So I realized I needed to build the slow pyramid (metaphorically - I didn't use single brick pieces) and just relax and enjoy the process. And I did and it was fun. I let go, I was in the moment and not thinking about being done so I could be in the next moment. LEtGO. LEtGOd. This week I made a LEtGO LEtGOd box as one of my creations (day 82). I kept getting the message to let go, let go of the thoughts that race in my head at the middle of the night, let go of the fact that I can't control when things will work out and when they won't, let go of anxiety and worry and fear. And the message to Let God have and take care of all those things. It's often suggested to make things tangible and find a way to get out of our heads, so I created the LEGO LEtGO LEtGOd box. Wow. Really pulling it all together. I also really like that it displays my growth in building with LEGO blocks. The fact that there are functioning moving parts is pretty amazing. Sometimes I doubt myself with this 366 project. I think I already have enough going on, why am I adding something to my plate? I think people don't get it and they probably think it's stupid and a waste of time (unless they are an AFOL). I think I am never going to have enough ideas to make it through the whole year? I think it will be a waste of time. I think am I really even enjoying it and playing or is it causing more stress and anxiety since I have to do it and I am sharing it with others? And then I have days like Day 76 where I got to bring one of my favorite metaphors to life. And Day 77 insights into how play can bring me in the moment and help me relax. And Day 82 where it all comes together and I have a huge sense of gratitude and purpose and trust. And so I keep going and I have to LEtGO and trust this process and LEtGOd work through me. Because I know I am not doing this on my own (believe me these ideas are often inspired of what to create and the quotes that get picked when they get picked is no coincidence). I know God is using this strange idea - to play well everyday - to grow me in my faith because it's new territory for me. I told you already I liked LEGO - I made houses and cars and the kits, but only when doing play therapy or the nieces came over. Besides that I didn't usually allow myself to just play, let alone experiment and try to see where the brick building process took me. My life looks like a big leap this year and I think God will use whatever we allow, but it probably helps when it's something we are not super strong in or something that we don't know how it will all work out as we may let God have a bit more room to surprise and delight us. I hope this week, especially with Easter, you will LEgGOdt, LEtGO, and LEtGOd. I actually think that's the right order too. LEGO.
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AuthorLee Ann Hilbrich is an author of three books, a Certified Daring Way™ Facilitator of Brené Brown's work, a Qi Gong and Yoga Teacher, and a SoulCollage® Facilitator. She's also certified in Equine-Facilitated Learning.
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Lee Ann Hilbrich, MA, LPC, CDWF
Daring Discoveries, PLLC
I abide by the Brené Brown Education and Research Group's Belonging Statement (Click Here to View) and am committed to inclusivity, equity, diversity, and belonging.
Daring Discoveries, PLLC
I abide by the Brené Brown Education and Research Group's Belonging Statement (Click Here to View) and am committed to inclusivity, equity, diversity, and belonging.
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