"No Pressure, You Know?"

That's what dear Anne of El Milagro Studio said to me in response to my worry about not painting in this post. She had other wise things to say as well, as had all of you, but "no pressure" — those two words have been on my mind constantly since then!

I don't know about you, but I put enormous amounts of pressure on myself! And I'm not exactly sure why!

I'd like to blame it on someone else or on my upbringing, but the fact is that nobody applies pressure to me other than my own inner voice.

There are many people who have significant external pressures. I am lucky in that I don't! And I think that's part of it. It's still hard for me to enjoy my good fortune without feeling guilty, without feeling I need to work extra hard to justify the wonderful life I have right now. Do you know what I mean?

And those feelings often prevent me from moving forward, from enjoying all that free time I have, and the creative projects that are in front of me.

Does that ever happen to you? It's such a waste of time and energy! Mostly I am aware of when it's happening and will make a conscious effort to enjoy life. But after all these years of an easier life, the enjoyment of it still doesn't come naturally. Part of me has trouble believing I deserve it.

So, yesterday was one of those days. And I decided to take my wonderful friend Beth's (of Beth's Take on Life) advice to "just be as I am." I took the pressure off. No plan, no guilt, simply being.

And a funny thing happened. I spent the whole morning sewing on a project that had lain dormant for weeks, after which I suddenly - out of the blue - felt like painting again. Plus, I finished two crocheting projects AND made a delicious peach crisp ... but that's a recipe for another post!

So, the motto for today and forevermore: NO PRESSURE!