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One of the most surprising
discoveries in working with creativity was how consciousness, in its
ability to feel and sense, seeks to experience a feeling of
contentment. Or, it seeks what may be better described as a “warm
fuzzy feeling.” The term “warm fuzzy feeling” refers to the
conscious feeling you remember having as a child cuddling up with
your mother or favorite stuffed animal or security blanket. However,
the desire goes much deeper than merely wanting the feeling in two
ways.
One way is in terms of the depth of feeling. Here the essence of the
feeling is more like the feeling a hungry infant would experience
when it is held tightly against it mothers breast and receives both
physical and emotional warmth, nourishment and support in the early
months of life. The other aspect is that the desire to experience
this
warm fuzzy feeling is inherent within consciousness. It goes
well past the physical experience of a child being nursed by its
mother.
Spiritually it has been described as the deep
longing in the heart for the Beloved/beloved. If one focuses
outside physical satisfaction and to the unseen realm for this
feeling, the longing is perceived as for the Beloved, God, the
Source of Life itself. If one focuses in a more earthly direction
and into the physical realm, the longing is for the beloved or that
perfect soul mate. The desire to satisfy this feeling can be so
strong that we will compromise our truth so as to not be denied this
feeling.
Although this feeling and desire transcends the physical, as very
young children we learn to interpret it physically. We learn to
willingly comply with whatever is asked of us rather than lose this
comfort. As a very young child we wanted the
warm
fuzzy feeling of being cuddled (or its equivalent) rather than
face the anxiety of not knowing whether or not we would be wanted or
accepted. We developed certain response patterns to life to avoid
the discomfort of not knowing. The response patterns become habits
that allow us to go to a way of being that give us the assurance and
security that we would get our warm fuzzy feelings.
As we continue to grow and develop the
ego, we may rebel at what is asked of us but nevertheless we
still long for this place of warm fuzziness and tend to compromise
ourselves to get it. We think we grow out of our desire for
childhood cuddling when actually only the form changes. As a result
of the experiences of childhood, we retain two things. One is we
retain the belief in the connection between this
warm fuzzy feeling with physical sensations. That is, we believe
it is a physical sensation as opposed to something more inherent
within our being. The second things is we keep the habit of going to
a way of being that would give us security and remove our
anxiousness.
From a
creativity perspective, seeking a “warm
fuzzy feeling,” is inherent to consciousness and will always be
something present within us at some level of our being. The desire
for this feeling can and will become addictive, as powerful as any
substance or activity used to avoid anxiousness or fear that may go
along with the anxiety. However, what gives one individual a warm
fuzzy feeling will not necessarily be the same as another
individual. As we grow, we each learn to interpret life differently
and what we think we need from life to feel satisfied and contented.
We each have are own unique desires and create this pattern in our
own unique way. What is warm and fuzzy for me may not be warm and
fuzzy for you.
From a
creativity perspective, it is most interesting to see how the
mind can be self-defeating and defeat its own desires and stated
intention by habits that produced these warm and fuzzy feelings. It
is quite understandable how we used these habits of
mind that assure us these warm and fuzzy feelings to avoid
facing displeasures or things we did not like or want in our life.
Sometimes it is hard to realize how they actually became obstacles
in themselves and
defeat one’s stated intention. The habits that gave a
warm fuzzy feeling are as like other addictions in how we use
them to
mask our heart and to mask what we would rather not face or
feel.
Compounding the problem of triggering these habits when faced with
pain, fear or anxiety is that the
subconscious mind forms subconscious attachments to what it
finds comfortable and satisfying. A subconscious mind will form
attachments just as easily as the conscious mind. Any “warm
fuzzy feeling” is a sure way for
mind to become attached externally to whatever is giving that
warm, fuzzy feeling. That is, mind often perceives the “warm fuzzy
feeling” as originating outside itself rather than as a condition
inside itself. The end result of all of this is that, rather than
being present to what is as it is and create the feelings of
inner satisfaction, mind is conditioned to seek some experience
external to itself that gives a greater “warm and fuzzy” experience
than what is being experienced. This in turn leads to the
risk of addiction and/or addictive behavior. The question is,
“How do these habits we hold within our being which seek a warm
fully feeling act like an addiction in our creative efforts?” We
need to explore whether or not if what we are drawn to create is
simply seeking a deeper experience of this “warm and fuzzy” feeling
such that we end up in an addiction of some type. Or, are we free to
experience our creation and
move freely to our next creative endeavor knowing we are a
powerful enough creator to create a way to satisfy our deepest needs
without becoming tapped.
Related topics
A warm fuzzy place
Topics on addiction
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