Sandra couldn't sleep all night. Not that this was any different from the rest of her week as she'd been up tossing and turning in her bed trying to figure out where a much needed wave of creativity was going to come from. Her motivation? Sandra was rapidly approaching a deadline. She needed to have three new numbers totally choreographed for an upcoming competition and rehearsals were going to start in just a week's time. "I'm so far behind the gun, I don't know what I'm going to do. It's like I have writer's block, nothing is coming to me concerning the three numbers...NOTHING! It's not like I haven't tried. This is the most frustrating thing ever!"

Sandra was stuck. She was frantically searching for a cool oasis in the middle of a hot and teaming desert. Not a drop of water was to be found anywhere, no matter how many stones she turned over. All she kept running into was dry and baron land. Sandy's dilemma is not that unusual as most of us run into what appears to be a solid brick wall from time to time whether we're trying to be creative or not. So the question is, what do you do when you need to call upon your creativity and it just doesn't seem to be there?

First, let's take a look at what creativity is and where it comes from. I believe that creativity is something that every human being has. It's an energy, a gift from 'The Gods' so to speak and something that we can use to better our lives and those lives around us. Creativity is something that, in its original state, can't be seen. Just like love, joy, peace or happiness are things that can't be seen by the naked eye, creativity is something that can be felt with the heart. That's where I believe creativity can be found, its home is in your heart. So how is it that love, joy, peace, happiness and creativity can't be seen? It's because we already are all of those things.

The key is this; Any of the unseen things such as creativity can be called upon whenever we choose to. If you should ask and end up not receiving, check to see if you might be creating a blockage where there shouldn't be one. If there happens to be a wall where there shouldn't be, ask yourself why. Maybe you are tired. It could also be that you are thinking of things in the past or future too much to be open to receiving in the present. Sometimes that type of mind-chatter can be just like a brick wall. Believe you can get the creative flow you need and then, as if someone is going to whisper an important message in your ear, be open to listen and receive. Believe it. Know it. Expect it.

So what happened with Sandra? Here are her own words; "I finally had enough. I had to stop blaming everything on outside circumstances as if my blockage had nothing to do with me. I realized that whenever I wanted to get the creative flow going, my mind would immediately jump to issues that were happening in the business office of our studio. So it's like I went off into the possible future without ever waiting to get my answer and blessing of creativity in the present. It's like I wasn't listening. I'd ask but then I wasn't available to receive. I was thinking too much about stuff that had nothing to do with the present moment at hand. I finally had to ask myself why I would choose to spend so much time thinking about negative stuff that hadn't even happened yet, when it had nothing to do with getting those three numbers done. Why would I want to sabotage myself like that? Instead of being angry with myself, I just sat there and laughed! I loved myself and my wandering mind and then once again, I asked for my 'Creative Muse' to make itself known to me and help me with the choreographic task at hand. Anytime my mind wanted to wander into the past or future, I smiled and quickly returned to being in the place of listening and receiving in the present. And lo and behold, stuff started to flow! And flow...and flow...and flow! Ideas where flooding in as if it finally poured heavy, soaking rains after months of drought. YEY! In three days I had all three numbers done and, by the skin of my teeth, was ready for the first rehearsal. Why did this happen to me? For me to learn a lesson. Be present in the present and creativity is always there. All I have to do is ask. If someone would have told me how simple this is, I would have laughed at them. But now I really understand what's going on here. I am so much more than I think I am. Getting proof of that from time to time is what life is really all about for me."

So there you go. Need I say more?