In Conclusion, The End Of The Book

     I finished reading The War of Art by Steven Pressman.  It is such an excellent read, I highly recommend it for anyone who is or wants be creative.  I think it should be on book lists for art students everywhere.  I must say, the style is easy to read, he gets to the point and delivers the message clearly.  The message is pretty powerful, too.  When I read traditional books, I tend to give into the temptation of leaf through the pages at the end, because I can hardly wait to get there.  I read this on an e-reader, which is new for me, and with this you have to click, click, click to get to where you want to be, and without a book mark to place anywhere, I didn't dare venture off of my page, so I read every page in order, and then finally found myself completely done!
     In essence, to be an artist is to tap into your soul, create what your soul wants and not be concerned with what the world thinks or wants.  Also, that our soul is connected to a higher spiritual plane, and we will be full filling our purpose for being here.  Mr Pressman's final thought is: "Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor.  It's a gift to the world and every being in it.  Don't cheat us out of your contribution.  Give us what you've got."
     All I can say is, "wow"!  I may have to get back into this book to re-read parts, but I feel there is great value in what I have learned.  My only hope is that day by day, I remember these thoughts and that day by day I do something that brings me to my goal of creating art more present in my life.  There will always be the conflict of what the world wants from me and what my soul wants from me, but I have to find a way to bring my soul more present in my life. He did touch upon reinvention of ourselves and shedding the old skin. I found that amazing, since the theme of this blog is the reinvention of myself, to be the person I was intended to be all along. Thanks for sharing my journey, I will let you know the steps I take along the way.