John Lennon once said, " Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans."  It's been roughly 2 and 1/2 years since I last posted...not because I'd forgotten, but life simply had other plans. In truth since 2/1/12...my mojo has been an elusive mistress at times..often not surprising me until the panic of last minute inspiration sets in.  No time to post pictures of shiny happy beady jewelry, at least not properly as all I had handy was my camera phone...

Of course, there is also my overly anxious brain that I contend with as part of my daily routine.  Many days it runs amok on many different tangents on all the things I should be creating and on other days it simply seems to go on strike, mocking me, just waiting for last minute panic to set in.

I still go through the whole " why on earth would anyone ever want to buy my stuff?" phase...just as I'm typing this right now going..."people are not going to want to read my words."  (bad grammar blah..blah..blah))

However, things are changing...I am learning to dance with the anxiety, thanks to a teacher (whose classes I need to get back to asap) and a friend who inspired me today, to return to the blog, as we share a very deep and yet profound loss in the passing of our mothers.

My mother, God Bless her, didn't think that she was creative, but I disagree. Creativity can be found in many forms..and she loved the written word and took beautiful photographs.  Besides which, as any of my immediate family knows, If you are a Riska, then art and creativity are in your blood.

My grandfather was a well known local artist in Winona, MN. known mostly for his paintings of the Sugar Loaf and other wild life scenes. He was a self taught artist, that often joked that he learned using the paint by number method.

In truth, I believe that as human beings, we are all born with creative souls, but some of us forget to take the crayons back out now and then in favor of busy lives...Sometimes, we forget the joy of bright colors or how much fun it is to color outside the lines...and most importantly, one of the things that I'm guilty of, is that it's okay to make mistakes...it's okay if something looks stupid...because that is what practice is for...it's how we learn.

I could, I suppose ramble on for hours as my brain is filled with tangents today...My muses want me to Zentangle, to bead, to braid, to write stories with friends...I'm not quite sure what the day will bring, but I am grateful that my mojo is dancing within me once more. Not as early, as I would have liked, as I had planned to get my inner Christmas Elf in gear, in June, but I am dancing.

I hope that you will join me as I return to my path. I plan on posting pictures occasionally of what I create, but also intend to share with you some of the things that inspire me and memories that I treasure...pieces of myself as I find my way back to the creative spirit within my soul and hope to inspire you along the way.

My mojo is calling, so it is time to honor my creative soul... Have a beautiful day.