Hello! Hope you all are having a great weekend so far! Ours has been good – so glad it’s a little less hot outside today. Thinking we’re going to be able to actually take a walk without melting into a pool of sweat! It’s the little things. I’m also very thankful to have James home again – he was away all last week on a business trip, and it’s been so nice to have him back☺ I don’t sleep very well when he’s not here, so this weekend has been all about catching up on some lost sleep from the week. I’m feeling much more energetic today!

But, even with some good sleep under my belt, I still just haven’t been feeling very motivated to write. I’ve been putting it off all weekend, like I usually do, and focused on other tasks instead – like running errands, grocery shopping, cleaning up the house, laundry, etc. When I get the notion to write, I immediately think of something else I just NEED to get done, or that task that simply cannot wait. And then, when everything has been crossed off my to-do list [except for writing of course] I am just too tired to think about starting. I guess you could say I’ve been lacking motivation, but most importantly, I have been lacking inspiration. I am most inspired by my surroundings, and being confined to a small apartment in the heat of the summer does nothing for my imagination. It’s not an excuse, but it does pave the way for distractions to easily interfere with the creative process.

Unfortunately I’m not really able to get away and do anything inspiring at the moment, so at times like these I like to look at my inspiration board – basically a picture board of places I’ve been, family members I miss, things I want to do, places I would love to go, even some quotes from some pretty inspiring people. Just taking a few minutes to lose myself in the memories associated with the pictures somehow gives me new motivation and inspiration to begin writing again.

Currently, these pictures and quotes live above my writing desk in my office, but they’ve had many different homes throughout the years. I’ve had an inspiration board for a long time, and although the pictures and quotes tend to change slightly with my inspiration, the concept has always remained the same. If you’ve never done something like this before, you really should! It may seem a little strange, but pictures and words are such powerful tools to draw inspiration from – both have always helped me tremendously. So, I thought I would share a few of the quotes and photos I have taped above my desk to give you an idea of what I am currently drawing inspiration from – enjoy!

“All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost.” – J.R.R. Tolkien
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