One Way or Another, You. Are. Creative!

You say you’re not creative? Baloney!

Everyone is creative in one way or another. It might not be in the "traditionally acceptable" disciplines, but whoever made that rule up should have his (I'm sure it was a man) mouth washed out with soap.

Case in point: our “catio”. We live in a rural area alongside wild critters of all types. Our cats are our family so when they are outdoors we want to keep them safe. Unfortunately, increasingly emboldened coyotes have taken to galavanting in our front yard when they think we’re not looking. So, we decided to build a big kitty-cage, a safe haven for our cats. This pen allows them to smell and experience, to some degree, “the great outdoors” without becoming an easy meal.

My husband began a plain and simple version of the catio – a large pen surrounding a small tree – but his creativity kicked in and the project grew. He added steps, ramps and a cat walk to wind around the tree. There is also a pole to climb/scratch and of course the tree for climbing as well. He found a large diameter pipe that will be installed soon at catwalk height to serve as a cool tunnel. We might connect another tunnel into a window of the house as well, but frankly, that side project is currently #832 on our to-do list, so we’ll see.

The point is, the catio began as a very practical project, but blossomed into a lovely, über creative sanctuary for Dave the Cat, et al, because my husband is passionate about working with his hands. Out of that, his imagination (and yes, his love for his kitty friends, but don’t tell him I said that) combined with his skill to create a happy cat place.

Anything and anyone can be creative. Coding is poetry, baseball is ballet – even insurance actuaries probably find creative ways to express themselves in dry, statistical data.

You are creative – don’t say you’re not. It might not be drawing or painting or music or dance. Big deal. Creativity flows from passion, so whatever you are passionate about, that’s where you are most creative. Embrace it!

And if I ever hear you say you’re not creative again, I’m going to wash your mouth out with soap! 😮