Whole 06: Creativity is Not a Luxury—It's For Moms, Too Transcript
This transcript has been edited for clarity.
Laura Wifler: I remember this time when I was a mom to just one. I think maybe my son was like one-year-old, and I attempted my hand at dying curtains. Do you remember when it was like super popular to DIY on your own curtains?
Emily Jensen: In your washing machine?
Laura: Yes. In your bathtub, in your sink. You could do all sorts of ways, but it was Rit dye. It's probably still around.
Emily: Like those IKEA curtains? Like remember those white IKEA curtains?
Laura: Yes. You buy super cheap IKEA curtains. That's exactly what you do. I lived right by an IKEA in Minneapolis, and then I went out and I bought this bright green— Kelly Green—dye. I was so proud of myself because at that time you couldn't find Kelly Green curtains. Those weren't on Amazon, where they are now—where they're like twenty bucks everywhere.
Emily: You moms don't understand.
Laura: The resourcing we had to decorate was minimal. Everybody had to DIY, and I was so proud of myself, though, for creating these curtains for like, I don't know—all in, it was probably $40 or $50, so it was pretty cheap compared to the very expensive high-end curtains that I had been seeing. What I always reflect on in that season is just how much time I had for creativity, and I loved that. I felt like, when I was a young mom, my brain was just whirring with creativity and creative ideas. What about you?
Emily: I have the same story. The grip that DIY had on us back in—
Laura: It was strong.
Emily:—the 2010s. I remember I got into sewing for a little while, and I was making blankets and burp cloths. I think I tried my hand at a dress that I never wore because it was weird—like a maxi dress. I remember doing similar DIY things, especially with decorating at that time.
There weren’t the things that there are now. I remember making my own gallery wall and putting the art inside everything, and I just had a lot more time—which is interesting because I look back and I'm like, “I was so tired, and I was busy as a young mom, and things felt hard.” And yet, I had a little bit more of that margin time, like during nap—maybe if baby slept in or whatever—even to write. That was really when I started writing.
Laura: Same.
Emily: I can remember putting kids down for a nap and doing a quick clean of the house and then sitting at the kitchen table and plugging away on a writing project that I didn't have to do. It was just because I really wanted to reflect on God's Word and tell it in a creative way, but I've really found as we had more kids and different sorrows entered life—I think definitely after the season of dealing with our son's diagnosis and walking through that—and then kids got older, and things got busier. I really feel like I've gotten to where the creative work that I was doing that was this overflow is now my job.
Then, outside of that, it feels like anything that I spend my time on has to be on my to-do list, and it's really just been in the last year that I've started to delve back into creative endeavors. I bought paints last year. I don't know how to paint, but historically, I've been a person that enjoys being creative and having a few outlets like that—or saying, “Hey, when I go to the coffee shop, I am going to just freewrite. I'm not going to only work on a project.” It feels so indulgent, and yet it's been so refreshing.
Laura: Yes. I was going to mention that I feel like there's this sweet spot—particularly if you have the privilege of getting to be a stay-at-home mom—where when you have one child, you probably have almost an overflow of where your mind and your skills and your talents and your interests need to go because you do have extra time. It feels busy, sure, but also, I think most moms to one kid would say also, “I'm looking for outlets.”
So many businesses have been started during that season, and at the same time, I agree with you that as we add more children, it seems like our luxury or our time for creativity becomes less and less. Or if you are working and you have a child right out of the gate and you are going back to work, you probably hit that way sooner than maybe a mom who is at home full-time. Either way, what we want to talk about today is how to bring that creativity back.
No matter where a mom is in her season—maybe you're in that season with one little child at home and you are like, "I'm creative all the time. I'm doing so many endeavors." That's awesome. It might change for you. For the other moms who are maybe saying, "Hey, I don't have any capacity"—they're maybe where you and I are at, Emily, with saying, “It feels like an enormous luxury. It feels incredibly indulgent for me to say, ‘I'm going to be creative just for the sake of being creative.’” We want to talk about why that's important in this series.
Every time I say this Whole series, I feel like I'm saying the entire series, but what I hope people are hearing who've been tuning into these episodes—the series is called Whole. Like all caps. In this series of being WHOLE as a woman of God, what does it look like to image God with creativity?
Emily: We talked about this a little bit in the show we did on the concept of awe but just that idea of—God doesn't just do the bare minimum. We talked about this on the story episode too. He doesn't just give us bullet-point commands in Scripture or like tell us in one paragraph what he's like. He shows through narrative and poetry and all these things—like, look at a flower, look at nature, look at the way that he's made the human body. Everything that he does is extra. [Laughter]
It's above and beyond and incredible with beauty. I mean, the Psalms talk about this a lot, but Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of his hands." You can look around and see God's immense creativity and how he has put that in our hearts as well—that we would desire to make things and not just make things for their function but make things for their beauty and for their interest and the way that they inspire and move people.
I think that's in us even when we become moms.
Laura: Oh, yes, it's part of being the Imago Dei—being made in the image of God. And I think one of those reasons a lot of people don't create is because they don't think they're creative. I remember, even as someone who's always written and loves to write, it took me a very long time to ever think I am actually creative. That's because I think sometimes we think it has to be with paint and ceramics and photography.
Emily: You have to be a capital A artist in order to call yourself creative.
Laura: Yes. You have to work with a medium that's tangible too. That's at least how I often think of it—as like, you have to have something—like typing isn't tangible-feeling. And yet, we can see that creativity is actually a lot broader. I think of our husbands; both of our husbands are engineers by education, and they have that engineering brain. Most people would not say, “Oh, engineers are the most creative people I know,” and yet, I think when we step back, I can see in my husband—he makes up the best games. He is so much fun with kids. He is constantly so playful in thinking of answers and responses and things that they can do together. That's creativity that—I don't know how to find that in me.
Emily: Yes. My husband is the same way. Give him any problem that feels a little bit chaotic—"I don't know what to do with this. This space is out of control”—and he will come in with the most creative solutions to make it efficient and work so much better. It's like his brain tackles problems with creativity, and I remember—this is a really silly example, but we were carrying around our crockpot from place to place, and I was always grumbling about the cord that was falling out of place. One day, he got a magnet, and he created this whole system where my crockpot cord sticks to the back of my crockpot with a magnet now.
Laura: Oh, cool.
Emily: It never dangles when I go anywhere.
Laura: That's cool.
Emily: He was so creative to come up with that. He's like, “I know that that's bothering you. Let me fix that.”
Laura: That's awesome. He needs to patent that and sell that thing.
Emily: I know.
Laura: I actually think you can get something like that on Amazon now.
Emily: I'm sure.
Laura: Now that it’s 2023, but way back when we were first having babies, that was an invention by Brad.
Emily: Well, if you see me with any weird thing on the back of my crockpot, that's what that is. I think it's good to realize that creativity is something that is broad. And even like you're saying, creativity in the way that we communicate things or creativity in the way that we approach problems. I even think about your to-do list—you can be creative in the way that you are ordering your days and in the way that you're tackling the tasks that God has put in front of you. So, I agree. I think even the most non-artsy person can still be a creative person.
Laura: Yes. We need to broaden that view because God has such a broad view of creativity. Think about how he didn't just create in one way. He wrote words, and in those words, he had stories and songs and poetry. So, within the inspired Scriptures, there's so much creativity. But then also he created the whole world and the universe and the rivers, the walrus, the peacock, humans.
When you start thinking of the vastness of the way that God's mind works, you can't even fathom it. And then on top of even these physical things he made, there's those intangibles—time and imagination and psychology. It's a wonder when you start to think about all the different ways that God was creative as he crafted our universe.
And we can even look at the life of Jesus. I think it's really interesting to look at him as an example too.
Emily: Yes. I love this connection because—I was looking up the word “creativity,” and I was like, "What does that really mean?" You break it into its core word and its suffix; “create” literally means to bring something into existence. And the suffix, “-ivity”—which sounds really weird to say—it's having a tendency towards something or having this as like an essential quality. I was like—Jesus is the literal definition of creativity, and you see that in John 1:2 that says, "He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him not any thing made that was made." I copied and pasted that from the Bible. I know that's a weird sentence. [Laughter]
Laura: You're not making up Scripture. That's the actual words, even though they sound strange.
Emily: I should have pulled in a different translation. All that to say—Jesus literally brings something into existence as part of the Godhead. It's just cool that that very Word comes from the triune God.
Laura: Examples I can think of from Jesus: he was a craftsman, a carpenter, or a stone mason. Lots of debate about that. We'll leave that out there. Well, which one was he? Probably stone, but who knows? Jesus turns water into wine and not just the okay wine—the best wine there ever was. We could think of the stories that he told and the vast variety of them, the types of gifts that he gives, his word and his counsel, the solutions that he sees—just giving creative solutions. He'd probably know what to do with a crockpot cord. He'd probably have a great idea.
Emily: I love when people bring questions to him in Scripture and everyone's like, “Oh, we're really going to get Jesus on this one. We really pinned him into an intellectual corner,” and then he answers with something completely profound that skirts everyone's questions and then also gives them an answer they didn't even know that they were looking for. It's just again—the way the mind of Christ works is so beautiful and amazing and unpredictable and rich and all those things.
Laura: I love that. Well, I think the whole takeaway from this is that finding a hobby or a craft that we can image God in is something anyone can do. Even if there's a woman on the other side listening who is like, “I am a doctor, or I am analytical; I am logical”—it's still something where we can exhibit creativity. That might be something as simple as throwing a dinner party. How you groom your dog—that's actually a really hard job. Requires an incredible amount of creativity and skill. Building forts with your kids. Maybe you plan MOPS events. Maybe just playing with your kids and how you invent games.
There are so many different ways beyond traditional mediums—which are good too. You and I—we are writers and podcasters, and there's a lot of creativity, I think, that goes into the work that we do. But also, like you were saying, taking time away to do things in other mediums is so refreshing and a reminder that we're multifaceted women and not just one-trick ponies.
Emily: It's helpful, I think, to stop and remember that everyone has a different measure of talent and artistic ability in different areas of life. Sometimes—I know you and I have experienced this as writers where it can feel like, “Wow, I know a lot of people who are a way better writer than I am.” It makes me not want to write because I think, “There's already enough good writers out there. What do my words contribute to anything?” That's true in every facet of life.
I think it's important that we don't get discouraged as we look around and see—maybe you love cooking and you love being creative in the kitchen, and yet you have a friend, or you follow someone online, and it feels like you're never going to measure up to what they have. There's this sense of, “Well, why even try?” or “Does this even really matter?” I think it's really important that we realize—no, all of our creative acts still can add value and love others around us, and we don't have to measure up to another person in order for our creativity to matter.
Laura: 100. I think that it's a reminder that we're supposed to grow and mature and spend time on these types of creative endeavors. If these are ways that we see that God has blessed us—that there's an interest that we have—and we're saying, “Okay, hey, I want to learn how to cook really well because it's fun for me, but I'm not that good.” Well, everyone starts somewhere. I'm always reminded of how you and I wrote for seven/eight years in the quiet, and we weren't really that good. You and I both looked back on our writing. It's cringe-worthy.
Emily: It is cringe-worthy.
Laura: We thought we were pretty okay at the time, probably. We're like, “This is publishable. Let's send it out.” There is something about giving yourself space when you are learning a craft or a hobby to say, “Well, I'm humble enough to know that I have lots to learn and grow in, and yet I'm still going to try anyway.” It's kind of that do-it-scared mentality. I think there's something really beautiful when we find that freedom and recognize, “No, I'm made in the image of God. My identity isn't found in my abilities to be incredible at these hobbies or crafts that I want to strive towards.” That gives you freedom to learn and grow while also enjoying it.
It's amazing what can happen over the course of five/ten years of applying yourself towards something. You will get better at it.
Emily: I almost feel like we have to get out of that productivity mindset—which is really what our culture values: measurable, tangible metrics of success. “How many things did you get done today?” or “What are the numbers? Where's the proof that you're doing things that matter?” Well, the creative process does not work like that. Sometimes the creative process feels like you're going round and round and round in circles.
Laura: You're getting a root canal.
Emily: You're actually walking backwards. Or sometimes it can feel like nothing is working. Nothing is working over and over and over again, and then all of a sudden, you just get past this block and a ton of amazing stuff comes out. I think we've experienced that—artists experience that, writers experience that, songwriters experience that—where it's like, yes, sometimes you have to do the exact opposite thing. It's like, “How is going on a walk contributing to your manuscript?”
And I’m like, “It is!” Yet, that's true when we are trying to be creative in our everyday lives as well. We have to have sometimes enough margin where we're willing to deviate a little bit from our super tight schedule in order to exercise that muscle and even have the capacity to think about something creatively. Like go on the car ride and don't listen to anything and see what your brain comes up with. When we're constantly filling it with stuff, it's hard to be creative.
Laura: Well, I think a big piece of being willing to make time for it is valuing it. I know we've talked about how important it's because we image God, but it's even interesting to look at the ways that God values creativity by even his own actions and how he directs the Israelites to value it. He saw a reason for them to slow down—like you're saying, Emily—and to take their time and spend even money on creative acts. In their building of the temple, God had very intricate instructions for that—not just its size and its grander but its actual beauty. He told Solomon to hire workers who specialize in various crafts.
We can think of the priests’ robes too. They had these fine linens, colored yarns, engraved stones—very lavish, especially in that time when you don't have Rit dye available like I did to dye my curtains. It was a lot more laborious, and yet, he valued that. Even God tells us in the New Testament—we're to think about what is lovely, and this goes back to just valuing beautiful things. Maybe there's a disparity between our taste and what we believe is beautiful and what we're capable of developing. I think that's a real thing and that's a whole other creative podcast topic we could talk about.
But I think there's something in there to say that this is a value from God—to be creative, to spend my time saying, "Hey, I can take an extra five minutes here to set the table in a beautiful way,” or “I can take half an hour and I can do some paintings, some watercolor, because that's of interest to me." And to not see that as wasted, frittered time but to see that as a reflection of valuing what God values.
Emily: I think something along those lines has been helpful for me—to be okay with having to find time for creative bursts, even, in a really busy season. Sometimes, maybe on a day-by-day basis, creative activities feel a little bit less accessible in the way that I want them to be, especially with more traditional things like writing or painting or DIY projects. But I can sometimes find that occasional two-hour chunk or night away or weekend away. Or maybe when on vacation, it's intentionally choosing—yes, I could use this time for something that visibly moves the needle on my life in this really tangible way. Or, I could say, "Okay, I am going to work on my creative writing,” or “I am going to go to the thrift store and pick through stuff and find something that could be interesting to help decorate our house with”—whatever those things are. I think those decisions can feel really hard to make because our time is so high-stakes in motherhood, and yet, we have to go look at God—and even his instructions in the temple. It could have just been a really basic structure.
He could have gone, “Let's go bare bones here, people. I just need this one space, the Holy of Holies. Let's just construct.” It is amazingly intricate and beautiful, and I think we do have a chance to image that, but again, we have to be okay with how it fits into our lives in any given season.
Laura: Well, and I'm reminded of our friend Ashlee Gadd's book, Create Anyway. She is one of the people in my life who reminds me to be creative just for the sake of being creative, because I can tend to want to monetize things or make something productive—to feel like, “What's the ROI?”—because that's just my personal mentality. I have been so encouraged by her heart. If you guys are even feeling an inkling of enjoying the show, you will love her book, Create Anyway, because it's all about, as moms—it's made for moms; it's a book written for moms—how we can find time to create anyway, even in the margins of motherhood—whether that's writing or photography or painting. She does a wonderful job of showing why there's value and a sacredness to taking time to create and to honoring that side of us as being women. I just commend that book to you guys because it's a great book. Honestly, I feel like it's exactly what this show is about today. Definitely check that out.
Emily: Okay, so as we close, let's get practical. One thing we want to keep in mind is that we're creating not just for ourselves to enjoy primarily. This is not about self-actualization; It's about giving glory to God and, ultimately, serving others around you with something beautiful and finding a way to bless others through your own creativity. We want to remember that God knows our season. He knows when things are crazy, and we can trust him in the midst of it and step out right where we are and try something creative, even though we feel like we don't have time for it.
Laura: Yes, so much of this is about trusting God with your time and your talent and your skills and not getting frustrated that you're not the best, like we talked about. Seeing other women as women you can learn from, not as competition, and displaying humility as you learn and grow and try new things.
Today, we want to encourage you guys, as we focus on being whole women of God, that you take some time to try a new creative endeavor. Just try your hand at it. Get some friends together maybe even or get some accountability, and we hope that you're able to image God through this endeavor as you guys just try out some new creative things.
Emily: And have fun.
Laura: Have some fun.
