Repetitive actions are a necessary part of any art. The ability to do the same thing one more time. As a crafter/artist, I have daily practice and tasks. To do something well, it requires repeating. Athletes do the same when they train. I’m at summer camp right now and tried my hand at needle felting. I had no idea what it was, but I learned. It has everything to do with repetition. Repeating a learned skill over and over until you get the result you want.
There is a lesson here, repeating a learned skill over and over until you get the result you want and then continuing to repeat can be applied to all aspects of life. To life, to love, to work, to business, to art, to relationships. Isn’t that how we approach our worlds? We find what works and do it repeatedly.
Some spend more time on what doesn’t work, and continue to repeat that, that falls in the “Repeatedly doing the same thing and expecting different results” category. If it’s not working, fix it! Go ahead and try it one more time, but tweak it, change it, alter it in some way to avoid the same result.
Life imitates art. Repetitive tasks are what make up art, whether spending time writing, or beaning the bible (long story) or needle felting, or ____________(fill in the blank.)Everything requires repetition of small tasks. The same is true of life, to be successful at business, in relationships, in sports, everything requires repetition of small tasks.
My relationship is successful because I repeatedly do the things that make it so. I do small things for my partner, I tell him I love him, I hold his hand, I listen to him. All small tasks done repeatedly to show how much I care. My business is successful because I do a million small tasks repeatedly. I make posters, I respond to emails, I reach out to competitors, I follow through on every little thing (or try to!). I am a product of repetition. As is art, as is life. Repeat the things that make you a success, remember it is the simple act of doing the things again that move you forward, sometimes just inches at a time, but forward progress is still measurable progress. Celebrate the successes, then get back to work repeating the things that brought you that success.
Last year at this time, I set a goal for myself, I do that a lot! But this one was completely different than most of them. My goal was to complete the Documented Life Project 2015. DLP is an art journal prompt, one each week for a year. Art, really? What do I know about art?
For years I have fancied myself an artist, I’m not, but I want to be. I can’t paint, I can’t draw, I don’t photograph well, but I can do a number of things well, just nothing that would count as an artist. I can cook a pretty good meal, every day of the week, on a Camp Chef. I can craft well, not my own ideas, but I’m pretty good at embellishing others. I love to make handmade cards, but my friends have to come up with the ideas first, I just know how to improve them. I can sew, kind of, I can crochet, kind of. I used to embroider and tole paint a lot, then I had kids. I can put together a room that looks good, I can decorate for an event, I can create party favors, but still, I’m not an artist, I am a crafter.
A Life Unscripted 
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