What on earth do I mean by, "Einstein hair"?

Once in awhile, I'm awakened by my creativity. It actually rouses me from sleep and makes lounging in bed impossible. I simply must get up and capture the ideas - there's a fear there, that if I don't, the ideas will be lost forever and I won't get any more.

Now, I know for a fact that's not true. I've been shown that the best ideas will always come back, sometimes seeming new again.

And in those early morning hours, long before rational thinking sets in, the desire and will to bring my ideas to fruition - together with that little bit of fear - propels me out of my comfortable bed and to the nearest piece of paper.

Once sparked, my idea-generating capacity usually snowballs into a free-flowing pool of ideas. And while I'm trying to get myself showered, dressed and ready for the day, they just keep coming. And so in between the bathroom and the bedroom, my moisturizer and my comb, I'm back and forth to the desk or kitchen table to jot down more and more things.

Now, there's a certain time limit to how long I can leave my hair wrapped in a towel. Ideally, it's just long enough to dry it a bit, but not too much that starts to take on the funny shape it's in.

On these creative mornings, my "towel time" can extend far past its limit. And the result? Einstein hair, sticking out in all directions. For me, it's a badge I wear with honour for the rest of the day.

Christianne Northrup, in her book, "Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom," writes about some of the things women go through as they cycle through the month. Interestingly enough, these highly creative times that I experience can actually be traced back to that cycle. Even down to the detail of how vivid my dreams can be at certain times, as well.

I wrote about the creative cycle in the Everyday Artist newsletter, back in June 2006. It's fascinating to take a look back and see how my creative cycle is being expressed today.

Writing Prompt: What can you do today to honour your creative cycle? Do you have an idea catcher in place? Check out two of my favourite idea catchers - jott and blogging, and also watch for upcoming news of a brand new idea catcher that I'm putting together for you!