If You're A Creative Person, Consider Yourself Lucky

I don't like to be a downer on the internet. I know I sometimes share unfortunate news on here and on Twitter, but for the most part, I try to stay somewhat positive. I'll be honest, though -- the past couple of months, I've gone through some tough times. (But I've had quite a number of good times too, actually.) One of the best ways I've dealt with it all has been through creativity.

Creative people are lucky. When we hit a rough patch, we can look around us and take pieces of what we see and feel, and use those pieces in our creations. I don't even mean just writers. Musicians, artists, anyone who does a craft can use that art to express what they've experienced. If I wasn't creative, I wouldn't have all of these outlets.

I feel really fortunate. Despite my circumstances.

One of the hardest, most painful things I've had to deal with lately is the passing of my cat, Zo. She was in seemingly good health until only a week or two before her death. I didn't think I'd lose her so soon. I'm coping all right now, but there's still a peculiar emptiness in my heart that wasn't there before.

(That's Zo, two years ago, sitting on her favorite scratcher. Even with all the comfy places to sleep around the house, she preferred cardboard. So strange.)

Losing Zo brought out in me a strong feeling of missing someone. I currently miss a lot of people, but this fresh wound made me relive that initial heartbreak when you realize you can't be with someone anymore. It's almost a beautiful feeling, because it means you loved someone very much.

I plan to explore the depth of that feeling in a future story.

So, thank goodness I'm a creative person. It's certainly helped me deal with tragedy. How about you? Have there been times when you've found inspiration from an unfortunate time? Do you feel fortunate to be creative?