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by Melissa Harris

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

Perhaps you don't consider yourself creative. But, we are all creative: our creativity simple emerges in different ways. Consider the imagination one employs to make intelligent financial decisions, or how one can come up with yummy and inexpensive recipes with healthy ingredients. We call upon our creative selves many times in the course of a day, but some of us don't count these acts as imaginative. We have been conditioned to believe that only those that paint, write, play music, etc. are officially the "creatives." Our beliefs that we are not creative sometimes begin early on if we were not encouraged in that way by our families. Perhaps we may have been told in school that we should stick to more practical subjects. It's easy to fall prey to accepting the image of how someone else sees us. When we know ourselves well and are confident in our abilities, the reflections of others do not affect us.

The following are some ways to support your creative urges. If you don't think you are creative, or if you are feeling creatively blocked, these five simple suggestions will help you push through.

1. 1. Mindfulness
      When we are not mindful we may miss opportunities for finding inspiration. What do I mean by "mindful?" When we are mindful we are completely present in the moment; when we are present we are not focused on the past or the future. Our attention is on our in-the-moment circumstance, and we have an awareness of our surroundings by way of all our senses.Track yourself to observe how present you are just for one hour as you are going about your day. Stop to check in often to see if your mind is on the past or if you are thinking ahead. Inevitably, you will be doing this to some degree. When you catch yourself, gently bring your focus back to present time. As you get in the habit of monitoring yourself this way, it becomes more automatic and easier to stay in the moment.

      Now that you are present and available for inspiration you may discover that the beauty of the road you drive down each day inspires a painting. Or that the sound of the birds singing lifts your heart and puts you more in the mood to clean or re-arrange your home. With a clear head you may find that conversations with friends may act as fodder for a piece of writing. The rewards of a clear and peaceful mind are many.

1. 1. Enlarge Your Vision
      Take a moment to contemplate how you may be keeping your vision small. "Your vision" of what?, you may be asking. This could include a specific project on which you are working or even how you view your life. I speak to many folks who don't even bother to try and think big because they have felt trapped for so long. Often when we have been stuck in a rut we forget that there may be solutions or options of which we have not even thought. Conversing with a trusted friend is a good way to shake things up as long as we are not complaining, simply conversing.I remember feeling stuck with a particular painting. A friend was visiting, and she remarked that it would look so good with……….and made her suggestion. I followed up with her vision and was pleased at the way it turned out. I was surprised that I had not thought of it. My ego stepped out of the way in order to be open to her suggestion—another aid in the creative process. Opening up to the ideas of others has also helped me when it comes to other areas of my life.

      It may not be necessary for you to share with others. I find it helpful to view a problem or project from angles that may not have been obvious in the beginning. Your creativity will be heightened just in the act of thinking outside the box.

      More creative energy is available to you when your life is running more smoothly. When we apply the practice of looking at situations with a broader perspective, our lives benefit by our being able to implement new ideas and solutions to situations that may have previously been problematic.

1. 1. Show Up
      Numerous successful people have made the statement that more than half—or even most—of the work is showing up. How do you avoid your own successes? Are there instances where you have sabotaged yourself in regard to your creative desires? Does one of your frequent statements include the phrase "someday?" "Someday, I'd like to learn to play guitar." Or, "Someday I'm going to write a book." I hear this so often.Fear is probably the biggest factor in the way of creative fulfillment. Have you identified any fears related to procrastination of your desired activities? Journaling without too much thought, just free writing, is helpful in exploring one's inner feelings. Just open yourself up on the paper and let your thoughts flow without censorship to see what may emerge. I have surprised myself more than once with what came pouring out.

      If this is true for you, try addressing something on your "someday" list by taking very small baby steps toward that goal. It may be too scary to select the thing that you want the most, so choose what seems to be the most attainable.

1. 1. Take Notes/Keep Records
      It doesn't matter what you want to do creatively or if you have even identified what you want to do creatively. Keeping a record of what inspires you or things you notice throughout your day that interest you are fuel for later projects. If you find yourself waiting in the dentist's office, make use of that time to thumb through magazines; if you find something of interest for later, take a photo or make notes. File these gems away for when you are ready to work with them, whether they be a recipe or a room you would like to take some decorating ideas from. If you are driving home and the clouds are particularly spectacular, take a photo in case you may want to use the clouds in a painting.I have an accordion file of photos that has been a valuable resource for me for years. I call upon for this file for use in my paintings. The folder is divided up by subject matter that I tend to use in my art work. On a day that I have the urge to paint and don't have anything in mind, I may peruse the file and find images that inspire me. Or I may find myself in the midst of a painting and feel that there is something I want to add to it, or I may wonder what kind of tree may look the best in the piece. I also collect beads, bones, shells, feathers, fabric, and anything else I find I may want to include in my collages.

      This practice is not just for visual artists. I have a musician friend who records anywhere and everywhere she goes, and has been doing so for years. She doesn't confine this to music, eitther: she recorded the street sounds of the colorful neighborhood on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, including the whistle warnings of the local drug dealers. She also managed to record a "heartbeat" from the ancient stone formations in Malta. These sounds were woven into musical compositions she used in theater pieces many years after. If you like to cook, don't hesitate to ask for the recipe or at least ingredients of a dish you enjoy while eating out; don't forget to write it down!

      Keeping a journal is another handy tool for recording thoughts or ideas for later use. If you are a writer, chances are that you already make a habit of this. People you meet on an everyday basis may become characters in that next piece of writing.

1. Lose Any Competitive Edge
   Face it. There will most always be someone smarter, faster, better looking, etc., than ourselves. If we waste energy on comparing ourselves to others we may never take the first step toward our desired goals.I teach art classes, and I have had many folks come to me with stories of how their mothers, husbands, or others were artists and they didn't want to disappoint themselves with how they might not match their own ideals. These ideals were set either by these others in their lives or by their own impossibly high standards.

   I teach art-making workshops that are open to anyone. When a new student learns that they may be asked to share what they have done with the others, their fears set in and they often try to talk their way out of it. Ultimately, they learn from the others in the group.

   We have to begin somewhere, sometime. If we allow the abilities of others to stand in our way we are doing ourselves a huge disservice. When my students do put their work on the wall for others to see, they are always surprised by the positive qualities that the other students find in their art. We all have our unique talents. If you have the drive to do something and let others stand in your way, you may never discover a vision, or voice, or other skills that may be resting within.

Allow yourself to expand creatively by taking a risk. Begin today and enjoy the benefits a life with more creativity brings.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2015. All rights reserved.

I was adopted. I think my birth date is 6/20/1961. Unfortunately, I don't know the time. For many years (before receiving my amended birth certificate), we celebrated my birthday on June 21. When the birth certificate arrived, we learned that I had actually been born on June 20. I recently became interested in astrology, and I've become very frustrated in not knowing exactly when I was born. Does one day make a difference? I now understand that both June 20 and June 21 are on the Cancer cusp. It seems like Gemini and Cancer are total opposites, so I really don't know what to think! Any wisdom you can send my way would be appreciated!

Mel

Susyn:

You pose an interesting question. Astrology is a wonderful tool for self-discovery. Since you were adopted, you may find it even more fascinating.

You might be able to discover the exact time of your birth by contacting the hospital or courthouse where you were born. They should have a more detailed record of your birth, including the time.

If that's not available, a professional astrologer can help you determine the approximate time of your birth through a process called rectification. This involves reviewing certain events in your life, learning more about how you respond to life situations, and examining your overall nature.

It's helpful to have an approximate time of birth to extract the most information from your astrological chart. This assures that the planets are correctly placed in your chart and determines your ascendant or rising sign. This is a point in the chart that determines how you respond to the outside world as well as your physical features. It determines the start of the first house in a chart, which embodies the personal aspects of your life.

Being born on a cusp usually generates a combination of the sun sign traits on either side of that cusp. Thus everyone born from June 20 to 30 will carry both Gemini and Cancer traits. This is valid for all the signs. For instance, if you are an Aries born in March or a Libra born in September, you will operate under the combined influence of your sign and the sign preceding yours.

Geminis and Cancers are indeed very different. Which tendencies you inherit from each sign will depend on other factors in your chart. You may find it difficult to meld the intellectual prowess of a Gemini with the emotional depth of a Cancer, but once you do, you'll have the advantage of being able to clearly determine both your thoughts and your feelings regarding any situation.

You may find it helpful to list the characteristics of Geminis and Cancers. Review these lists and underline all traits that apply to you. From this exercise, you'll see you carry a combination of both and have the potential to develop the others. For instance, if you have many ideas you would like to share (a Gemini quality), but are too shy to do so (a Cancer trait), you can adopt a manner of personal expression that works for you such as blogging, or get involved in a group in order to overcome your shyness.

I encourage you to continue your study of astrology, for the more you learn, the more you will come to know and understand both yourself and others on a deeper level.

*****

Mata:

It's important to point out that you are only talking about your sun sign, which is just a small portion of your chart. From the day of your birth you can determine your sun sign, but to cast a full chart, you will need the exact time and place of your birth as well.

There is a method called time rectification through which an astrologer works backwards to try to determine the exact date and time of birth. To begin this process, an astrologer would ask you about the timing of all sorts of major life events such as getting married, having a child, traumatic experiences, serious illnesses, the loss of loved ones to death, big victories, etc.

By examining the timing of these life-changing events, an experienced and knowledgeable astrologer may be able to determine your exact birth date and time. This is a lot of work, of course, so you would be wise to choose someone of unquestionable skill and experience before you invest in having this done.

However, you've mentioned that you now have a birth certificate. In light of this, it would be wise to revise your former assumptions about your birthday and use this information as the basis of determining your sun sign.

Perhaps your birth mother didn't officially report your birth until a day after you were born because she needed time to think over the huge decision of giving you up for adoption. Perhaps she just wanted to have one day with you before she delivered you into the arms of your adoptive mother. I can think of many reasons why you may actually have been born a day earlier than your adoptive parents believed.

Of course, astrology is just one of many great tools for studying your nature and the plans your soul may have for this lifetime. Since astrology is so dependent on knowing the exact time of birth, it may not be the best tool for you.

You may find numerology or some other spiritual practice a better fit. In numerology, you only need your date of birth and your name to begin a full analysis. Numerology also takes into account things like name changes, so if your birth name and your adoptive names are different, you can work with that information to explore both your deeper nature and the higher purpose behind being adopted.

It also may be possible to be hypnotically regressed back to the time of your birth, and in this way access detailed information about the date, time and other circumstances. A gifted hypnotherapist can also regress you to the period before you were born to get information about your soul's plans for this life.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.