Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use. — Earl Nightingale
One part of my Year of Time was to contemplate blocks of time and I felt like a 100 Day Project was a good thing for contemplation. So way back on January 19th I began a journey. For 100 days, I committed to stitching 15 minutes a day on a 7×5½” piece of fabric… 20-7×5½” pieces of fabric – to be exact.
I was leery of the time constraint … 15 minutes seemed like not enough. I had no idea what I would do. How it would go. But what did I have to lose… 15 minutes a day? Some scraps of fabric? A small investment for a time study.
And so I pulled out a few handfuls of fabric scraps… left over bits… unusable bits. Or so I thought. I am ever so grateful that past me did not just toss these bits!
And over the last 100 days I have discovered that 15 minutes can hold joy. It can help you focus! It can help you discover new ideas… in places you never imagined! Time helped me release every preconceived notion of what I thought… and showed me what could happen when you intentionally let those 15 minutes be all. And those 15 minutes each day… well they were so full! And in those 15 minutes I found an authenticity that I did not know I had… a creativity… a delight in not knowing what was next.
It has been the best use of 15 minutes ever… on any day!
I have “done” 100 day projects before but not one of those had the impact that this project has had for me. If you asked me before January 19th what 15 minutes could hold… I would have said not much. Now today… I can tell you that 15 minutes can be everything!
I don’t love every page… but I learned from them. I stopped “trying” and began just doing… and in that doing I found that those 15 minutes of time was perfect… the most creative minutes of the day. I spent just 15 minutes doing the actual stitching, but as I discovered that creative spark… I spent more time letting ideas simmer. And the ideas just kept coming… it was just so amazing!!
But on April 27 when I put the last stitches on that final page… my heart ached and I shed a few tears. I was not ready to “be done” at all. 100 days and I really felt like I was just beginning! I did not want to lose all that I had discovered. I really did not want to lose my creative momentum… and what stepped into the stitching space was a surprising delight!
On vacation I opened a small art journal I picked up and continued the 15 minute habit with pencil, pen, and sometimes water color paints. Who knew that I would ever consider 15 minutes to be the best minutes of any day… but friends, they are the most magical minutes of all!
-
How it started… the view from the kitchen window in our Airbnb.
And the apple tree blooming in the back yard.
-
And the start of one of our favorite paths at Presque Isle. (Excellent for bird watching!)
I am simply loving time this year… it was a brilliant word and I had no idea where it would take me!
I am late to join Carolyn’s link up… but sometimes vacation should just be vacation! (And vacation time… well, it is best if it is uninterrupted!)
See you all back here tomorrow with some Unraveling!
Such a fabulous way to continue your 15 minutes per day! I imagine that shoe 15 minutes are almost like a form of meditation (at least that’s how I find my stitching to be). Love your sketches and love that you are enjoying time!!
*Those…not shoe!
Oh, Kat. This is a celebration, is what it is! Of your word — and past words. Of your creativity. Of growing + learning, in ways seen + unseen. I can’t seem to stop looking at that first watercolor. At a glance, the first time I read this post on my phone (which I don’t like to do for all sorts of reasons; now, I’m on my laptop where everything’s more comfortable!) — I thought I was looking at an illustrated storybook open to the daffodil page. I love that you’re translating your 15 minutes to another creative outlet. What riches.
This is a wonderful post, Kat! I often find myself wasting time, thinking, “Oh, I only have 15 minutes; that’s not enough to get anything done,” so I do nothing (or nothing that is useful or brings joy). You’ve inspired me to do some thinking about 15 minutes. I’ve been on the fence about a stitching project and will look at it in more detail to see if I can use it to enter into that lovely 15-minute mindset you’ve described so well. Thank you!
You put your 15 minutes to very good practice.
I adore the idea that 15 minutes can be everything!
I smiled so wide reading this post! I love that your exploration of Time has incorporated previous OLWs. And the joy you got from just 15 minutes a day is such a great reminder that we don’t have to devote a lot of time to something to reap huge rewards from it.
Stop trying and start doing – that’s so profound, I will try to follow your example!
you are inspiring me!!! love this and the 15 minute bite of something different. Creating space. (your paintings are beautiful)
What an interesting view of time – to look at the fifteen minutes of the stitching project. And go you – for extending it to include some visual art. Your artwork is so beautiful.
Just15 minutes, and look what happened. Truly inspirational, and terrific that you just kept going. I love your art work. Keep going.
cWhat a fabulous idea! Considering it myself…