On the Bridge Between Still and Alive
This is a mental, reflective exercise. All you need is your attention. You don’t have to write or draw anything—unless you want to. The point is to feel, notice, and be honest with yourself. This experiment uses imagery, intuition, and reflection to explore the space between feeling stuck and moving toward creative freedom. It’s especially for artists who feel blocked, but it can work for anyone feeling stuck in life.
The Bridge
Imagine yourself sitting or standing on a bridge, suspended between two worlds.
On one side is a landscape that feels calm and grounded. It might be rocky terrain, a quiet beach, a meadow, or any other space where you feel safe and still. A place that offers rest, grounding, and protection.
Let’s call this place Still.
On the other side is a place that feels alive and charged with possibility—but a dense fog lingers at the far end of the bridge, making it hard to see clearly. Imagine what feels exciting for you. It might be a jungle forest, a deep sea, or a mysterious ancient city. This is where your freedom to create lives—wild, alive, full of potential. The fog here is fear, obscuring the path ahead.
Let’s call this place Alive.
Exploring
From the bridge, you can move in either direction—or stay where you are.
Go toward Still.
Go toward Alive.
Or pause on the bridge itself.
Stay with each place long enough to notice what happens inside you. What sensations, emotions, or impulses arise? Trust what you feel more than what you think. There are no rules. You don’t need to fix anything or reach a conclusion.
If you move toward Alive and feel fear or uncertainty, notice whether staying with it—without forcing clarity—changes anything. Sometimes the nervous system needs time before it can open, see, or move.
If you stay in Still, allow yourself to really arrive there. See whether rest, calm, or grounding brings clarity—or whether it reveals something that needs to be acknowledged before moving on.
Both directions are valid.
Neither is failure.
Three Reflections
You can sit with these questions or write them down. Or maybe a different question comes to you.
What is Still saying to me?
If this place could speak, what would it say?
Is it asking you to stay—or simply to be recognized?
What is hidden in Alive?
If you stepped into the fog for a moment, what do you sense beyond it?
What emotions, desires, or fears live there?
What kind of bridge do I need right now?
What would make movement—if any—feel safer or more possible?
Time, support, light, permission to pause, or something else entirely?
Closing
When you’re ready, gently come back from the imagery. Notice where you are now—physically and emotionally. Let the images fade, but stay with the feeling they left behind.
At some point, you will be ready to sit with the question: What is my next step? It might be a shift in perspective, a small creative action, or simply allowing things to remain unclear for a while.
You can return to this exercise whenever you feel stuck or disconnected. Its purpose isn’t to push you forward, but to help you notice where you truly are. Its function is to clarify what you’re actually experiencing, not what you think you should feel. The way forward doesn’t come from rushing or forcing clarity. It comes from being honest—about what you feel, what you need, what you’re afraid of, and what you’re drawn to. The visual meditation simply helps bring what’s already present into awareness.
From that clarity, the next step becomes obvious.
Good luck on your journey! 🖤
“A creative life’s a life that’s driven more strongly by curiosity than fear.”
