Find and foster deeper connections with those you have around you

My message is reflecting on my project Nocturne, that I created over the course of the Creatures Project. And I think what came up for me during this project, because it also happened in line with the pandemic, is this idea of concurrent moments of grieving or concurrent tragedies happening at once. There was so much loss globally and collectively, a lot of personal loss not only in my own life, but in the lives of those around me. And all of this, I think, is echoed by the grief we may or may not be dealing with due to the climate crisis and all the creatures and other species that we’re losing all the time. And so there’s this ongoing collective grief that’s sort of an umbrella over all these other smaller, maybe not smaller in folks lives, but less global moments of grief and tragedy. And so I think the lesson for me during this time that came out of this project is to think about how to find and foster deeper connections with those that you do have around you, from your family members to your friends. Some of the things that came up in this project are to connect with your neighbors, to ask more questions of your loved ones, ask deeper questions of your loved ones, and to find ways to cherish those that are around you that you have the potential to lose before they are lost. Also, to remember that art is always more powerful when you seek this connection and it can be so easily lost. We are so distracted today by technology. So I think one of the overarching lessons was to seek connection and engagement with others in all possible ways, and to remember that everyone’s presence or lack of presence is felt. So that’s my message to myself or to practitioners in the future, it’s to not forget how important it is to foster deep connections. It’s an ongoing, lifelong process. So I will take my message and put it in the bottle.