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Taking such a wandering path to arrive at abstract art has been one of those blessing and curse things.

I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I went to art school at 20, discovered a love of abstract painting, and set out on my merry way with an intense focus and desire to develop it fully.  I somehow envision that path as coming with an instruction manual.

Instead I spent years sampling this art form, trying that craft.  Intuitive painting, realistic painting, fiber arts, paper mache, jewelry making--to name just a few.

Some I dismissed quickly.  Glass work was too hot and sharp.  Metal work too noisy.  Bookmaking too fiddly and precise.  Don't need to revisit any of those.

But some seem to have touched something deeper and resurfaced over the years--particularly fiber arts, collage, and various forms of keeping a sketchbook or art journal.

Lately I've been wondering if I've allowed important activities to slip away in my effort to stay focused on painting.  I'll see a modern quilt pattern that calls to me with its interplay of solid colors.  A column of wood is begging to be collaged.  And I even yearn for a soothing evening of sitting on the couch and crocheting a beanie.

Are these diversions that keep me from tackling the harder aspects of painting?  Or activities that feed my soul and reenergize me to approach painting refreshed?  I'm not sure.

But for now I've decided that staying creative in any form is the most important thing for me.  I don't always have the energy to take on a large abstract, but maybe at that time I could paint a still life, or work on a quilt?

When I'm tired or uninspired to paint, I tend to forget about the other projects I've thought about doing.  So I made a set of art mood cards as reminders.  Each card has one project that calls to me--from working on large abstract paintings, to making small black and white collages, to finishing an online class lesson, to reading a few pages of art history.

If I'm uncertain about the day's direction, I look through my deck of cards, pull the ones that most appeal to me, and move them to the top.  It helps prioritize my interests.  They might be different the next day, but I find the same 5 tend to surface to the top.  And the same ones end up on the bottom, maybe to eventually be dropped all together.

I'm enjoying this method more that a simple list.  The flexibility of moving the cards around is great for prioritizing and keeping the whole bunch of ideas from swirling in my head at the same time and overwhelming me.  The cards allow me to easily see what works for my mood on this particular day.

I'm allowing myself to drift in whatever creative direction I'm pulled.  Maybe all these diverse interests will feed my painting.  Or maybe they will just feed my soul.