So you’ve decided to get an early start and be productive. You grab a cup of coffee... sit down in front of the computer facing the stark emptiness of your blank screen.... Nothing comes to mind. Your eyes conveniently notices the flashing email icon in the corner of your screen, suddenly drawn like a magnet, you decided to check your email. Many of us have experienced this form of procrastination. Where we give into the rationalization that once these convenient distractions are completed and put to rest, we can create. When in reality, this is an indication of our own internal resistance to facing the act of producing something.

Perhaps depression is the inability to see value in our pain. Depression is anger turned inward. Depression is a chemical imbalance. Depression is a mental illness. Depression is resistance to what is. Depression is physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, relationship, and career/financial pain. Depression is Beautiful. If we dive deeply into any of these points of view we deepen our understanding. [Photo: Like many actors and other creative people, Harrison Ford has struggled with depression.]

Creativity is not a feel-good, optional quality to cultivate, but our greatest untapped resource that is truly needed in this radically shifting time. I have seen how powerful creative acts can be for personal experience and growth. The skills we use as artists and creators are valuable and ever more in demand. The idea that creativity is a “soft” or unnecessary skill is not true.

I cringed at these things my friends said to me these few years. For those of you who don’t really get us, I’ve decided to let you know 10 things not to say to a depressed person from my own experience. ...As I’m not a doctor, I can’t give medical advice. Moreover, what to say is very dependent on the personality and situation of the oppressed. But what I can offer is my take on what NOT to say to someone in depression. Hopefully this can help you empathize where we weirdos are coming from, and for you to be more sensitive to our plight.

All of you who read my blog posts and who signed up on my website to eliminate a limiting belief are “weird,” according to best-selling author and popular blogger Seth Godin. Why would he apply that term to you? Seth uses the term “weird” to describe anyone who is not “normal,” in other words, people who express their uniqueness and who don’t try to fit in with what “most people” are doing.

In watching X-Men: The Last Stand, I noticed several characters with whom I could relate. They wanted to live a “normal” life and could not see the benefit of a power that they could not control. They were subjected to overwhelming pressure to get “cured” of their disease, and many succumbed to the promise of a “normal” life. ... The greatest power of all is my ability to go into such deep depression that I can gain insights into the true meaning of life. It helps me to find meaning and purpose beyond just surviving another day, and helps me to appreciate life for all of its richness.
 

James Turrell makes artwork that is simply amazing. I think his work with light and darkness is a perfect metaphor for trying to see depression in a new light. Each time I was forced to experience depression it became more clear to me. I began to redefine what depression is and better recognize the features that I could now 'see' more clearly. My scale began to change from one based on pain to one based on a much richer perception of what was going on. ... I have also begun to gain tremendous insight into many things, including my spiritual life.