A flowing rhythm: thoughts on a creative life
My name is Odus. I am 12 years old, and I have lived on Hornby Island my whole life. I am very grateful because Hornby is a beautiful place and has a community full of amazing people. Everywhere you look, there is something creative, whether it’s a quilt, someone playing music, a beautiful painting, or a cool house design.
I like to try to be creative no matter what I am doing. I feel like everything can be approached in a “creative” way. When I cook, I like to come up with crazy recipes to eat! Being creative means finding new and challenging (or inventive and fun) ways to do things—not just the simple way or the same way every time.
And being creative isn’t just about having an idea. It is also following through with your idea. Growing up with so many people around me who are artists and put so much effort into creating has made me want to work hard at the things I love.
I grew up with music always around me. I love listening to it and I LOVE to play it. I play guitar, piano, and drums, and I LOVE to sing. In the summer, I busk at the Hornby Farmer’s Market. Playing there is fun and makes you feel like you’re part of the action in a bustling place with lots of energy. I also sing and play guitar in a rock band. I love all music and am learning lots of rock songs. I also like to play and sing jazz standards and swing Django-inspired guitar music with my dad, brother, and friends. It’s fun to create with other people.
I think sports are creative, too. I love skiing, tennis, soccer, snowboarding, mountain biking … and so many others … it’s hard to decide my favourite, but maybe it’s skiing. Skiing keeps your mind moving fast. Out of the whole mountain, you get to decide which line to go down and you can make a flowing rhythm down the mountain.
I love music and sports because they both have that flow. With skiing, I can do the same run five times and make each run different, maybe by finding a new path through some hard trees or taking a jump or going as fast as I can, or just working on a certain move. When I play music, every time I play a tune, I can try to add something to make it a little more interesting and challenge myself with a new chord or a new rhythm.
I think everyone is creative, but some people don’t try new things. Maybe people are sometimes afraid they might be bad at something, and so they don’t let themselves try new things. But if they don’t try and follow through with learning, they won’t know how much fun they can have.
If I had a superpower related to creativity, it would be that I could make the things people imagine come true. Then they could achieve everything they want to do—they would wake up and discover they could do anything. (But not evil people!) And I’d be able to fly!