Whenever tragedy strikes, it leaves us with a mixed bag of emotions and thought. Of course there's the sadness of loss, but this week I think I'd like to look at the creative inspiration we can draw from personal tragedy.
I'm not going to go into specifics, but I missed last week due to being caught in the midst of loss. The way I tend to deal with grief is to take a step back and allow the turbulent sea of emotion to naturally ebb and flow. I've never been one to get overt with my grieving process, so that's about all I'm going to say about that.
However, when we are faced with tragedy and mortality, it's often a catalyst of existential reflection. There's a huge swell of good intentions that drive us to prioritise and focus on that which really matters in life. After all, while we deal with sadness and loss, we're faced with our own mortality and the value of life itself.
Then consider the idea of the "tortured artist", which is a term I've never been a fan of. It suggests that the only way to create something brilliant and original is to have suffered. As if the only value in art is the reflection of tragedy, rather than the conveyance of a message, or the start of a conversation. It's a problematic term, but only because there's also some truth to be found within.
It's true that significant events in our lives will always promote creativity. I'd go so far as to apply the experience to everything that actually matters. Love and death are classic muses for creation, with a pedigree of evidence to back it up.
While I try not to dwell on the macabre, I have to admit that more than a portion of my own creations have been driven by something dark. In a lot of ways, creating something beautiful or interesting from something negative, is an excellent way of dealing with those darker emotions. Hence we come full circle back to recent events of tragedy and the point of this post.
I always feel that there's something to be learned from every experience we have, especially when it involves other people. Falling in love teaches us how to avoid our cynicism, while the tragic loss of a friend can teach us to cherish that which matters most in life.
I'm now used to the fact that when tragedy hits, I do feel a wave of creative inspiration, but perhaps not in the way anyone might expect. The simple act of creating something is always a therapeutic endeavour, and I have always used creativity as a way to deal with sadness. Although, rather than drawing or painting pictures, I'm always driven to write something.
I can't explain why, or how come, but for some reason all I want to do right now is write and write, and write. For whatever reason, when I'm sad, I feel like typing words and telling a story. It might be short or long (once I tapped out 60,000 words in a few days), but it's always a stream of consciousness that I find centring and immensely therapeutic.
I suppose that my point is this: creativity might not require suffering to function, but if creation comes from tragedy, then an otherwise horrible event can be channelled to something more productive. I'm a big fan of using up negative energy on something creative, whether it's anger or sadness, there's something beautiful about letting it out in a productive way.
When we experience meaningful loss in our lives, we're faced with a personal consideration of mortality. If we ceased to exist, would we be happy with the life we've lived? Alternatively, I often ask myself whether I'm living the best life I'm able to live. Thankfully, I'm fortunate enough to say that I feel like I'm on my way, but that's as transient as anything in life and needs to be nurtured.
We all grieve and deal with loss in our own way, but if we manage to produce something positive with all that energy, we've achieved something meaningful. Tragedy and suffering may be a part of life for all of us, but we can choose whether to dwell in sadness, or be driven to live better.
I think most of us will agree that the best way to honour a lost friend, is to learn a thing or two, and go for gold. Laugh, cry, talk to friends, sit in silence; it's all part of the deal. The only thing worse than losing a friend, is failing to change for the better as a result.
We all could do better in some way, so why not give it a shot. Some folks like to do something big like start a foundation, but even the smallest details are worthwhile. I'll be making some decisions to change my life for the better, rather than continually putting it off until later.
"Later might not never come"
"Be here now"
"The world you're in is happening"