Active Imagination 4/5

The Deeper Meaning of 'Finding the Middle', Living a Three-Sided Life, and Balance

Eyes closed. Deep breaths. Invite the archetypes to communicate through their images.

A new detail: Someone taped a piece of paper to the wall outside the door.

“WRITING STUDIO”

I see a walnut desk inside the workspace, and hardcover books stacked on the floor.

I’m sitting at my computer in clean white socks.

My restless feet bounce on the rug.

I must be adjusting the look of the title splash because the words, “Finding the Middle” appear in block letters and seem made from scoops of ice cream.

Neapolitan pastels outlined in hot fudge and flecked mint green.

Once you arrive at a workspace and imagine yourself working on a project, the guide instructs you to ask yourself four specific questions and “See what arises,” he suggests.

Guide’s Question 1: What quality does this work most express?

Balance. “Finding the Middle” is about balance. Until recently, when it came to creativity, I felt cursed. I could make a strong beginning. But I’d always burnout. I’m a person who runs to extremes, and I’ve been told I take myself too seriously. I can’t tolerate living that way anymore. But how might I bring about balance?

Question 2: What challenges does this work present?

The struggle to find proportion between opposite qualities: personal vs. universal, creative vs. critical, intuition vs. rationale, certainty vs. uncertainty.

Question 3: What do these challenges suggest about your problem-solving?

That I’m going to have to focus outside the problem to make any improvement. Like a spinning ballet dancer, I’ll have to pick a point at eye level instead of looking into the floor. I’ll have to trust in what works.

Question 4: What part does this work play in your larger creative goals?

I’ve been looking for my artistic compass. That one idea that orients me so that my voice remains consistent across different mediums, and in different areas of life. Some call it theme; others, moral; I’ve heard it called an armature. It’s my philosopher’s stone that tells me the answer to every creative decision large or small.

Instruction: Imagine yourself making a symbolic change or alteration to your project.

Added a triangle as the focus of the title splash.

The triangle symbolizes balance.

Question 5: How do your changes affect the work?

Symbolism adds a philosophical core to the armature. It lends visual support to the idea.

Question 6: How do the results reflect back on you as creator? How do they change your perspective of the project?

Incorporating the triangle unites a belief that is personal to me with universal principles and acts as a bridge.