With the start of a new year, or in this case a new decade, I felt a very strong desire for inspiration. Inspiration for what specifically, I wasn’t sure. I simply just wanted to feel inspired. This could be because it’s a brand new year and it’s common to want to hit the reset button and change a few things for the coming year. I don’t do resolutions so I’m not referring to that; it really is just a somewhat random feeling.
Seeing writer and director Greta Gerwig’s new film adaptation of Little Women on the day after New Year’s could have aided my restlessness. I left the theatre firmly wanting to successfully accomplish a goal. But not just to get it done and tick it off the list. I want to be able to say, “Boom! I nailed it.” On a side note, Gerwig’s Little Women is fantastic and I highly recommend that you see the film.
Narrowing down the one main thing I want to accomplish is easy. I know what I want to accomplish. I want Downtownite to grow. With this growing ambition for success comes the yearning for inspiration to come and that is what I’m finding tricky. I don’t want to wait for inspiration to strike; I want to chase it to set actions in motion so I’m closer to accomplishing my goal.
As cliché as it sounds, I decided to visit the Auckland Art Gallery to see if I can draw inspiration from the art. During my visit, I was eagerly awaiting for the magic to hit me. I was looking at each piece of art naively hoping that it would “speak to me”. It sounds silly, I know, but it was worth a shot. Plus, it helps that entry to the gallery is free for New Zealand residents so I really had nothing to lose by visiting.
When I left the gallery, I felt disappointed and considered my visit an utter failure. But I’ve had a change of heart. It’s really only as I’m writing this now that I realise that going to the gallery was actually helpful. I’ve never written something like this for Downtownite and I’m only able to do so because of my little artsy fartsy adventure. Making this change, albeit small, has somehow changed my mindset and now I am genuinely excited for what I can do with Downtownite in 2020. This is crucial as I felt that I was on autopilot for the past few months and was purely focused on moving things along instead of actual growth and development. But things are going to be different this year. As the saying goes, “new year, new me” so I am very excited to say to watch this space…
