Sailing Despite the Storms

So I  picked up Rollo May's book The Courage to Create, thinking to myself how this would be yet another book that discussed methods of creativity. 

Boy, was I wrong. 

The Courage to Create is way more than a book on artistic style and creativity.  It's basically a giant life manual highlighting the absolute necessity of artistic endeavor to the human experience.  Perhaps a better comparison would be a babbling river of philosophy meandering through canyons of poetry, weaver watery postcard signatures that sound as though they should be scrawled within fortune cookies. 

Some freakin' HUGE fortune cookies 

The Essentials:


First and foremost,  Rollo claims that creativity is essential for life, not just making art.  A life without creativity is hollow and meaningless.  This is why creativity matters. 


Rollo goes on further to explain the role of courage in the process of creation.  It is courage that pumps lifeblood into all other virtues and aspects of self.  Courage cannot exist without fear, and only in overcoming fear can one engage in creation. 

Sometimes that's easier said than done. 

There are plenty of artists who completely agree with Rollo on that point, too.  He recounts many experiences he's shared with various artists, most notably Georgia O'Keeffe, who said:


"I've been absolutely terrified every moment of my life and I've never let it keep me from doing a single thing that I wanted to do." 

Rollo further claims that conquering fear (and by extension creating art) requires choice.  People are not like acorns naturally bursting our shells and growing into towering oaks.  We must find our inner selves and live up to our potential.  Artists are shaped and strengthened by genuinely creative activities, which Rollo calls "encounters."  It's when a poet pushes past their fears and pens their soul, when a painter captures a moment in time, that an artist grows.  And keeps growing! 

a process that goes on forever...

These "encounters" help artists to express themselves.  Anybody who bottles their truest self away is a traitor to themselves and the people around them.  Remember, creativity is conquering fear - fear of what people think, fear of failure, and so on. 

The Experience:

I'm not gonna lie, The Courage to Create is dense.  Rollo's got a lot of philosophical mojo going on, and it might be easier for some readers (such as myself) to enjoy his writing in small doses.  Like cologne. 

Small doses, Tom!!

Anybody with an interest in art as part of the human experience will really enjoy The Courage to Create.  Not sure it should jump to the top of anybody's holiday reading list, but definitely worth a read. 


I'll leave with my favorite passage from the book (which is actually a fragment of a huge passage from the book):


"Poets may be delightful in the meadow or garret, but they are menaces on the assembly line." 


So go out and be spontaneous!  Don't be afraid to sail into the storm.  Who knows - you might come out of it with something weird and wonderful. 




Maybe more weird than wonderful...

Again, I'd like to state that none of the above images belong to me.  They are graciously provided by the generous all-knowing Google.  Fortune cookies are obviously the most reliable method for planning one's future.  Gravity Falls is a hilarious cartoon, which is surprising since it's produced by Disney.  Olan Rogers is a funny, funny man.  You should watch his YouTube videos posthaste.  Parks and Rec is quite possibly the greatest comedy on Netflix, and you should binge watch it over Christmas break.  Again, none of these images are mine.  They just sorta happened to find themselves on my blog page.