Build your own world.

Alright folks. Happy Wednesday! My sincerest apologies for not leaving a post for you this past Sunday. You see, what had happened that day was paralyzing. Let me explain:
...It was early morning. For some reason on this particular day, I woke up much earlier than expected...no alarm set. As my eyes opened, I could just make out silhouettes of figures scattered around my room. The time, 7:03 a.m. glowed across the room in a green haze. Blink once. The shape of a dresser emerges and begins to take shape. My alarm clock, my lamp, picture frames..all coming into focus now. Blink twice. This is when everything changed. My focus adjusts to the ceiling where the room begins jumping at a rapid pace. Back and forth it leaps in a horizontal motion, as if it were dancing to the rhythm of Beethoven's 'The Tempest'. My heart begins to skip a beat. In a panic, I squeeze my eyes shut tight.

"One mississippi, two mississippi...." 

With a full breath held in my lungs, I open my eyes. 
Exhale. 
Was I dreaming? At that point, there surely was no hope for getting any more sleep. With heart pounding, I peeled myself off the bed and stumbled down the hall to the bathroom sink. Ice cold water would do the trick. I splashed what felt like glassfuls of water onto my face.  Wiping the water from my eyes, my gaze fell upon the blue toothbrush resting upright in its dish in front of me. I hadn't paid much attention to the brand name stamped on its handle before. Blink once. Squinting my eyes, I strain myself to read the letters. They seem jumbled. Blink twice. What does it say? It's obviously in English....but I can't read it. I can't read it? Goodness, I can't read it! Did I bump my head? 
Frantically, I reach for something in the medicine cabinet. Anything with a label on it. A lotion bottle...and the label; all written in English...I can't comprehend any of it. What is happening? Mouthwash...can't read it. Contact solution bottle...can't read it either. Suddenly realizing the worst has happened to me and it simply cannot be explained, my stomach completely drops. How am I going to type something for my blog today when I can't even read? That's it. I have forgotten the English language. Just...gone. And so, I took the day off to rest my eyes until I was able to regain focus. 

Okay, don't be mad...but I made up this story to make a point. This didn't really happen to me. BUT. Can you imagine a world where this is your reality? I believe that you can to an extent. After all, we did go on a bit of a short-lived journey together, didn't we? (For like...a minute). I don't claim to be any sort of miraculous storyteller, but I do believe that we are all capable of forming our own realities. On P. 89 of the book "Steal Like an Artist", included in my previous post, author Austin Kleon talks about what it means to "Build your own world." We may be confined to one room or a specific location when creating, but we have the power to control that space and manipulate it to make it our own. 
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This post is all about you! I want to hear what your world looks like.  Maybe you think of tangible materials that you use such as inspirational magazine clippings or notes that you leave for yourself. When you build that world for yourself, be it mentally or perhaps a physical space of inspiration, what does that look like for you?

So leave a comment below and let's share worlds, even if it's just for a moment...