Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Am I creative or not?

A few days ago I was chatting with a stranger in the park. She asked what curriculum we used for homeschooling, and when I said we didn't use one, and she called me "creative."

I've been called "creative" here and there over the years, and it always sort of amuses and fascinates me. I'm glad people see me as being creative, but I personally don't think I'm one bit creative. In fact, I almost see myself as the opposite, or the antithesis of creativity, if such a thing exists.

For example, I used to teach music and drama in the public schools, and once or twice someone I had "creative ideas."

The truth is, I had absolutely NO ideas, creative or otherwise.

I got improv games off Internet sites. I literally watched Whose Line is It Anyway, took notes, and used some of the exact games in class the next day. I got a couple assignment ideas out of books. We played variations of board games in music class. I got a lot of arrangements and things from Orff workshops I regularly attended.

And so on.

Nothing I do in my ife is original or creative, really. I'm a musician by profession; sounds real creative and artsy, but not the way I do it! I have no desire to compose; I improvise very very little, and most of my hired playing is accompanying, which is playing what's written, the way the director wants it played.

I love to cross-stitch. It follows a pattern! No thought or creativity whatsoever.

I guess the only thing creative about me is my writing. Yes, there is come creativity in that, I guess. But not terribly so. Even my children's fiction is so obviously reminiscent of others -- mostly Ellen Conford -- that it's almost laughable. If I was actually well-known, she might come and sue me, ha ha!

What I am, if anything, is resourceful.

So that sort of begs the question: Is resourcefulness a type of creativity? Does it just look like creativity, even though further observation proves it not to be?

Don't know.

I'm not creative enough to come up with an answer. :)

3 comments:

Amanda said...

Maybe you're just mixing up "creativity" and "orginality." You're creating even if you're using or recreating someone else's ideas! As someone said... there's no new idea under the sun -- but you still have to know how to find them!

Stephanie said...

LOL! I always say I'm not creative either so maybe we are both using the word wrong.

Deanne said...

I like that, resourcefulness as a form of creativity. Almost everything I "create" was originally inspired by someone else too.