Line in the water

Arlo Guthrie is known to have said something like, “Songs are like fish. You just gotta have your line in the water. And it’s a bad idea to fish downstream from Bob Dylan.”

Much of creativity is like this (aside from the part about Dylan).

For us to engage with our creative spirit, we have to find ways to have our lines in the water. To watch. To listen. To be open. To be receptive.

And we can extend the metaphor, too. We have to find time to go to the water. To engage with it, float upon its surface, wade into it.

The fish are out there, but we won’t catch any if we’re far from the water’s edge with our hands in our pockets.