How to unlock your creative flow & be moved by higher energy

Years ago, I found myself in the Art Barn at Esalen Institute, sitting on a stool, painting a paper mache mask. I had originally signed up for a contemplative workshop but quickly discovered it was too cerebral for my liking. The Art Barn, with its freedom and creativity, called to me instead.

I began painting my mask magenta, then decided to add a vine of flowers trailing down the side. As I carefully painted the vine—immersing myself in the graceful, elegant movement of its form—I suddenly felt my hand being moved by something beyond me.

I wasn’t directing my strokes anymore. Something greater was moving through me, guiding the paintbrush, creating through me.

We humans like to think we are entirely in control of our lives. We set goals, make plans, and stick to schedules. Yet, in our striving, we often miss the whispers of something else—a force that urgently wants to move and express itself through us.

This Something Else is the creative force of the universe, and metaphor is one of the most direct ways we access it. Metaphor transcends our linear thinking and connects us with the powers of creation itself.

I’ve seen this profound connection in my work with clients. One client, exhausted and uninspired from writing her PhD dissertation, received an image of herself dancing. But when she stepped into the image metaphorically, something astonishing happened—she wasn’t simply visualizing herself dancing.

She was BEING danced by a force far greater than herself.

Another client, reeling from the emotional toll of a traumatic divorce, received the image of a deep, still pool of water. At first, he imagined himself resting in it. But then he realized something even deeper:

He was BEING rested—held in a way that soothed his very soul.

Do you see how allowing yourself to be moved by something greater creates a completely different experience? Being viscerally moved by these otherworldly creative energies is both transformative and exquisitely beautiful.

No one else will ever walk the exact path you’re walking. No one else carries the unique gifts you hold. By surrendering to these deep metaphoric energies, you participate in the creation of something entirely new—a new world, a new expression, a new possibility.

So, what might YOU create if you allowed yourself to be moved by these deep, transformative forces?

Are you curious to find out what wants to be birthed through you?

Let the creative force flow. You might just surprise yourself.