European (In)sight-seeing

Well, hello there, Summer. Thanks for finally bursting through the cool Chicago spring and offering a bit more space and light and heat.  I need you now, as I juggle a few more creativity/teambuilding gigs in the next couple weeks while also setting my sights on exploring a completely new land for me: Central/Eastern Europe.

Scenes from Art-Work, an art-based teambuilding program
I co-led in June at the Art Institute of Chicago and Catalyst Ranch,
resulting in client-created art work that reflected current global challenges

Yes, girlfriend Gosia and I are off in July to never-before-visited countries where some of my ancestors once lived. We'll be stuffing into a gas-efficient (I hope) little car and stick-shifting our way from Krakow to Budapest, down to the Croatian coast and back up to Vienna and Prague, ready to see with new eyes. We'll be picking up some friends and picking up some new ideas, perspectives and surprises along the way.  

I can't think of a better curriculum for creativity.  While I've continued to offer my own creativity curricula for groups and clients this past month (see images), there is little that massages one's creativity more than travel.  And I'm looking forward to taking off my teacher hat and fully embracing being a student of life.

Glimpse of a creativity program I led for educators in May,
stirring up new ideas and new song verses.

In fact, all the creative principles that I've written or talked about or tried to inspire in others are most at play when we venture outside our known worlds and explore new cultures. Even if I planned everything out (which we definitely haven't--know any good places to stay in Croatia?), I am still in many ways winging it like a student--operating as a beginner, being flexible, thinking on my feet, learning to go with the flow, stretching myself to communicate in another language.

It's an adventure in newness and change that both offers clues for better ways to be living--and appreciation for the ways I currently live. Either way, I can't wait for this cultural immersion and the insights it will bring.  I wish you your own special cultural adventures this summer!