Seriously.
Our ideas come from omnidirectional sources. Different sights, stories and sounds. Different cultures, beats and interactions. Internal attitudes, moods and random thoughts. Faith and freedom to engage. Confrontations. Celebrations.
You get the idea.
Which means that in our creative pursuits there are no bounds on inspiration. There is no absolutely pure form of any sound, scene or story line - all creativity is appropriated (borrowed, pieced apart, taken ownership of) from another time and place and then recreated here and now and through your unique abilities, ideas and calling.
I've been reading Night by Elie Weisel. Aside from the raw and gritty true story that it is, I caught a hint of caution about the arts during his time early on working in the concentration camp. A relevant observation for you and I, for artists.
Talking about a marching band made up of enslaved Jews, Elie recalled how one of the musicians truly missed playing a classical song by a German composer. He missed it for its beauty and the joy it brought in both playing and hearing. Why not just play it in his spare time? Because Jews weren't allowed to play the sounds and stylings of German artists.
Catch that?
Creatives. Art surpasses time and space and culture. Let it. Grab it. Lean into it. Freedom and unity is found in this inspiration and adoption beyond tribe, border and belief.
Caution. The moment we begin to set up boundaries on who can create, perform and proclaim __________... well, lets just say that creative concentration camps will be just around the corner.
Q. What are you inspired by? What are you inspired to create in this season?
Q. Does it build up or tear down? Creativity is the embodiment of building, uniting and sharing with the other. Are you building the other up with your creative pursuits?