I recently assisted a friend in emptying out her mother’s house. Her mother was a tiny, well- read, Texas native who’d traveled many places in her long life and had quite an interesting cache of beautiful things surrounding her at the time of her death at the age of 96. It was a big job.

In order to bring in new life one must first let go of something. Usually the letting go part comes first.

It can appear as a death, it can be of a person in your life, but it can also be of a part of yourself.

It's a busy, frenetic world out there. Everyone is going in different directions and moving fast.

How do you make time for connection and rest?

A creative relationship can be something anyone can develop.It doesn’t happen overnight and it takes effort and focus. However, the gains are so worth the legwork required. It can be with you as a painter, writer, ceramicist, gardener, musician, chef.

My goal was to keep all objects off the windowsill, or floor if possible, and to make this tiny room feel less cluttered. Minimizing the amount of items that draw attention to themselves, including artwork (which is an essential, but less is more), will increase the sense of peace and calm.