Each year as we round the corner into February, I get excited about Groundhog Day.  Not only because I like furry critters, like Punxsutawney Phil, who have a deep seated wisdom toward predicting the future, but also because I really love the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray. 

After watching it this year, its message really hit home.  I'd seen quite a few references to how living with Covid-19 and its limitations reminded people of the movie.  Each day we get up and work from home, going through the same routine without any special activities to look forward  to or break up the monotony.  

When Phil, the weatherman, starts waking up to the same day every day, his first reaction is disbelief.  This can't be happening!  Those feelings slide into anger and self-pity while he continues to fall into a huge puddle of water and get upset by the same triggers, which by now he knows are going to occur.  As he becomes wiser to the power of this information, he feels the freedom of having no consequences - that he can do anything he wants because it won’t matter the next day.  However, he also comes to understand that being destructive (driving a car into a mailbox) is not as satisfying as taking advantage of this new-found "time" to learn new things and help others.  At that point, he has a CHOICE to make, and in choosing to become a better person and help everyone in the little town, finally finds true joy.

Once he fully embraces things as they are and alters how he decides to "live with it",  he ultimately wakes up to a new day with the person he loves beside him.    

I still have a long way to go in changing my own routines and habits, but I know that the creative inspirations of my heart pave the way to accessing the joy that dwells within.

Through my art, I am connecting with people I care deeply about. I am connecting with the earth and an on-going understanding of how art is an expression of inter-being with life in its many forms. Creating routines which honor time for creative expression and generosity toward others can bring us immense joy. It's my new-found way to live life to the fullest.

Happy CONNECTING!

Shelley

P.S. If you’ve never seen the movie, you might want to check it out.