The Uncommon Advantage of Doing Nothing

E143: What do you see in the Negative Space?

Dear Gentle Reader, esteemed and patient member of our Tribe Tilt

I am struggling. 

I’m struggling to create meaning. At least, that is what I believe I should be doing in return for occupying space in your inbox this week. I don’t want our correspondence to be self-serving, one-sided, or trite.

I am normally very organized within my cycle of seven (we are now in our 21st cycle!). I usually have a plan - a direction for a shared learning after each cycle together. This cycle, however, I repeatedly find myself sitting in front of an empty page and … NADA. ZILCH. NOTHING. 

I struggle with that. I’ve posted E141: Slowing Down to the Speed of Sketching and E142: Bubbles and Splash! 

I wonder: Is that the point of this cycle? Is this it’s running theme? NOTHING..?

And this morning, as if to add giant exclamation marks, the universe sent me TWO articles from fellow writers on the secret value of wandering aimlessly.  And then, another popped in exploring the word “Invisible”!

How about we explore the value of voids, stillness, and negative space?

If you must know, my exploration started with my sister gently encouraging me (read prodding and insisting) to take up meditating. I journal … lightly. But I am having a heck of a time sitting still for more than 30 seconds. Go figure!

Meantime, I’m exploring different meditation apps.

The Calm app frustrates me. I get jarred at 13s as the voice in the guided meditation suddenly pops into my ear telling me to ignore the thoughts popping in … and I can only think “Hypocrite! I was just getting ‘in the zone’. Now I am back to 1 second and counting.” When/if I close my eyes, my mind starts flipping all over the universe like the Tardis on its intergalactic journey. So the closest I have come, so far, is sitting still (mind still going at 100 mph) staring at the waves shimmering on Jasper Lake on the Calm app for 23 seconds of unguided meditation. My sister promises me it gets better, and that this is a muscle that will only develop through consistent use.

Do you have a favourite meditation app? What makes it right for you?

So here are my Morning Pages on the topics of talking less and listening more, on mediation and allowing our sub-conscious to guide us. I think I have connected some dots. But maybe you can clearly see more in this exploration, and help my brain join some obvious neurons:

• I can handle transitions, the space from one to another, but I cannot yet cope with negative space

• How do I learn to embrace negative space separately from the concept of transition? Can I develop the patience to experience the value in doing nothing?

• The value and beauty of meditating - is it for me? And if so, how do I pick the right app? Does having a piece of technology in my hand to meditate automatically negate the idea of stepping into quietness and meditating?

• Negative space creates a shape around the edges of the two objects, helping them stand out against the white/black/neutral space behind 

• What shows up in the negative space? Negative space can have its own meaning (like the white forward arrow baked into the Ex section of the FedEx logo)

Is that the point? To stop the “should” script that keeps running in my head long enough to hear the undercurrent and listen for the undertones? To allow the wind to reveal to me the weather of the day and the beauty of leaves ruffling in the tree. To see what lies beneath the headlines. To notice what is obvious to others?

The more I explore negative space¹, the more I am intrigued and surprised! By the invisible things lying in plain sight that I had not noticed before. And once I see it, I can no longer “un”see it.

Oh! Now I SEE. I have to be still enough to discover what is hiding in plain sight, and find joy in the process and what I expose!!! So, that’s what is/was/should be happening. 
Is that, then, the subtle power of doing “NOTHING”?

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The articles referenced:

• Salman Ansari, Do Pointless Things - on how creativity can be its own reward and the point of pointless things is just that … you don’t know the point.

🦊 Do Pointless Things

• Brooke Smith, Hobby-ists vs Productive-ists A hot take on the art of doing just for the sake of it

Hobby-ists vs. Productive-ists

• Cindy Villanueva, Invisible “Invisible doesn’t mean it’s not there. It just means we can’t see it.” I would add the word “yet”.

Invisible

Enjoy! And let me know if you see other essays exploring this same topic.

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Thank you for being part of Tribe Tilt! And welcome if you have recently joined. We believe we can make a difference to the people and places that are precious to us - that we have hope and agency within our own lives that ripples through to others.

Stay healthy. From there all else becomes possible. Treat your health as the precious resource it is.

Until next week, stay curious
Karena

Dateline: London, UK

My sincere thanks to Brooke Smith and Emma Dorge, my editing buddies, who help me see the true message I want to communicate within the negative space of my first draft.

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1. For some wonderful examples of negative space images check out this link. My favourite is #5 Co-Existence by Tang Yau Hoong

tangyauhoong

A post shared by @tangyauhoong