for arts sake

writing as a creative and emotional outlet has been monumental for my mental health. weaving honesty, even when it feels icky, into poetry and other creative writing, has allowed me to honor my emotions. there's an endless amount of feelings we tuck away, afraid for others to see - less "attractive" parts of ourselves. sharing has been freeing.

fusing feelings with rhythm has been creatively fulfilling, even if the words and flow only make sense to me. it's also incredibly humbling! is my writing any "good"? I don't know! and it doesn't matter!!!

writing fluidly and without care has been a reminder that art can just be. though much of my favorite art is profound or political, it doesn't always have to be (and yes, we can get into the conversation that all art is political, because it is! everything we do as individual beings is political! but I suppose I'm speaking about art that speaks to politics, current events, on a very literal level).

for many years, I felt like art wasn't worth making unless it directly spoke on the world around us. that mindset is a huge excuse - for me not to share and be seen - a defense that I'm trying to slip away from. I've enjoyed art pieces that haven't been deeply political, so why do I force that constraint on myself? it's nothing new, we love to drag ourselves down while we let others fly. pushing back on this thinking is reason enough to create for arts sake.