What is your dream day?
What could your life look like in 2 years time if everything went right? Here's mine!
Sophia Bush once said “You’re allowed to be a masterpiece and a work in progress.” and oh boy that hit me in the chest this morning. Some parts of my life are feeling SO RIGHT whilst other parts of my life have that horrible, stuck and stagnant energy.
I’m a classic overthinker. It doesn’t take a lot to tip me into an anxious state where I’m simultaneously living in the future and the past. I know logically that it’s not good for me. That in doing it I’m sacrificing the joy, serenity and possibility of the present moment. My logical brain gets those ideas. But the anxiety grooves are worn deep into my brain and it takes a lot of effort not to go down those paths.
A journaling exercise I LOVE to do when I’m in that weird stuck energy is to imagine what my life might look like in a couple years from now. To live in the possibility of the future, to dream, to escape. To stop focussing on the negative or trying to constantly solve problems but rather allow myself to live in the positive for a while. To think about what might happen if everything went right - it’s often a hell of a lot more motivating!
So, what is your dream life? In 2 years from now where would you like to be?
For me, I’d wake up in my own home. A place in the country, hearing the birds tweeting. I’d stretch in my luxuriously cosy bed looking around at all the images of family and friends that I have on my walls. Gaze resting on a gorgeous focal piece of artwork on the other wall and taking a moment to feel truly grateful.
I get up and stretch enjoying the feel of the soft rug beneath my feet. I pad downstairs, barefoot, it’s a gloriously sunny June day, a breeze in the air. My dog greets me downstairs and we have a cuddle - she’s so excited to see me and it fills my heart with joy. I let her out into the garden, taking a moment - the garden isn’t finished yet, I’m still deciding what flowers I want to plant and how the best use of the space might be. I’m still growing into this home of mine, it’s exciting to gradually make it feel like home to me.
I pad back through to the kitchen and make myself and the dog some breakfast. Nothing fancy just overnight oats and fruit out of the fridge for me, I need to get on with my day. Once we’re done and fully awake I get my phone off of charge in my studio, check my schedule for the day, reply to any messages - sending one to my boyfriend to check how his day is going, he always starts work earlier than me!
I take Tilly on a walk round the woods before I get properly started for the day. It’s good to stretch both of our legs before it gets too hot. Whilst I’m out I listen to a podcast, I love learning about new things or keeping up to date on what’s going on in the art world (if you have any podcast recommendations leave them in the comments! My faves are Happy Place by Ferne Cotton or The Unpublished Podcast By
and .)Once we’ve finished our walk Tilly settles in her bed in my home studio whilst I potter around getting all the supplies I need to start work. I always start the day with creativity, everything else can wait. I have three or four pieces of paper stretched directly onto the walls of my studio, some pieces more finished than others. I take a moment to look at the work. Look at the inspiration board tacked to the wall next to each one and take a moment to tune in. Which piece needs my attention first? How am I feeling and which piece of work does that align with? I pick one and set my timer for 30 minutes. Putting some soft Jazz music on in the background I get to work.
My timer goes off and I give myself a choice, if I’ve reached a flow state I’ll occasionally carry on for another half an hour - one whole hour creating is my absolute maximum for the day. But today the work has felt sticky, that’s okay, I’ve made progress, I’m pleased with the work I am producing and these things get time. The work is for my first solo show and so the pressure I’m putting on the work is too much. I know that and yet I’m struggling to find a way to move around it. I’m a little annoyed about it so I journal, a tool I reach for to check in with myself whenever I need to.
15 minutes later I’ve got all my frustrations out, I’ve given myself a pep talk on the page and I’ve written the affirmation “I love you, I trust you, I believe in you, I am so proud of you” - this is how I usually sign off in my journal. I get myself a fresh glass of water to drink and head to the sofa with my laptop. It’s time to properly check in with what the plan is for today. I show my face on instagram, I upload the progress I’ve made on my art and reply to some comments, I love connecting with people. I also pop onto Substack notes and check in there.
Once I’ve done that I have a zoom meeting with a gallery owner who is interested in my work. I also have a wholesale order to fulfill and a pet portrait to do. I smile to myself, it’s a lot of work but it’s also so exciting. I love getting to do a mixture of things that all fill my cup.
The day passes in a blur of to do’s as most days do. The meeting went really well, the gallery owner was really enthusiastic about my work and has promised to visit my solo show in a few months time. She also wants me to produce some 3 pieces for her to sell in her gallery alongside 3 other awesome female abstract artists - a dream opportunity that I didn’t even know how to dream about! I also took a good 2 hours out the house for lunch to switch off and give my brain a break. I went out and ran errands, got myself a fruity iced drink from the local coffee shop, picked up a few bits of shopping and allowed myself to generally potter about for a bit.
Now with the wholesale order ready to send off tomorrow and the pet portrait done and sent to the client for feedback I’m pretty tired. It’s 5pm, which is pretty late for me to be finishing work, I breathe a sigh of relief knowing I have a quieter day planned for tomorrow.
Me and Tilly walk to my boyfriend’s house. He’s promised to cook me a BBQ at his with a few of our close friends coming over too. Part of me can’t be bothered to socialise but I know I’ll enjoy it once I get there and it’ll be fun to tell them my good news about the gallery!
The evening is filled with laughter, good food and even better wine. I go to bed feeling content, thoroughly worn out but excited about the future.
Phew! Well that was a pretty lovely few minutes in a different world. Now I guess I’d better get on with my day, allow myself to mull over the action steps I might need to take to get me there and trust that the universe has been listening to what I’ve asked for!
I’d love to hear a little about what your own dream day might look like in the comments?
Just in case you’re new around here… Hey! I’m Amy and I’m an abstract artist who is learning to take myself more seriously, cultivating a regular painting practice and sharing that journey with you in my weekly posts. I would love to have you along for the ride!
Also, here are a few other articles from my back catalogue I think you might love.
It was nice to hear about your dream day Amie because it seems so similar to mine. In my life at the moment, maybe because I don't have a full-time job yet, I find that I am living my dream day most of the days. I see my friend's at training, write poetry when I notice a muse, go to the gym, wake up early and listen to music and podcasts. Maybe I'm overly optimistic, but maybe also that's what your teens and 20s are for :)