Creativity in crisis is that thing that gives one a spark, its that something beautiful even in chaos. I am a Nigerian and I know how it feels to stare uncertainly at things/situations and wondering how to push through. But somehow, we keep going, we keep pushing, we keep surviving because that's just who we are and our creativity is more a survival instinct, one that just comes in we’re pushed to the wall.
Firstly, lets go back to the period of pandemic, everyone's life changed overnight, fear set in, wrapping everyone up. Businesses shut down, families were torn apart and dreams slipped away. But then, somehow, creativity set in and flourished. Numerous people, people who had never considered running an online business suddenly started and became experts at it. We see tailors who made dresses for parties and all now turn to making face masks, chefs who only served five stastar foods now started home deliveries and more, all this was jot just about the money, but the time had changed and theres the need to stay alive, adapt and survive. We found laughter in online skits, hosted online show and all, we now tturned mundane moments into memories. And to me, that’s creativity in crisis, one where you are able to transform/turn pain into purpose, where you are able to turn loss to lessons.
That(pandemic) was just an eye opener before going deep. There are the everyday struggles..fuel scarcity, bad roads, fluctuating power supply. There was a particular scene I saw some years back, it was a guy who own a barber shop on my brothers street, I don't know how he did it, but due to the high price of fuel, he began using car batteries to keep his business running. Also, around last year, my cafe man in school started using gas to power his petrol using generator, I didn't know how he converted it or is doing it, but all was because the price of fuel is now unbearable, coupled with that, the litre isn't what it always use to be. It’s not the ideal situation, but they didn’t wait for perfect conditions to make a living. They made it happen with what they had. That’s creativity. People who use plastic bottles or designed fashion pieces from recycled materials, don't just do them for craft sake, its a survival means dressed up as creativity.
This is one of the few topics that has given me a hard time to come up with something, I kept wondering if this is the right thing to talk about, is it this type of creativity, but this ideas won't just stop coming, they are creativities too, this is the real creativity, you see our mothers making all sort of dishes, one we've never tasted before, like my mom, she would just go to the backyard and cut different vegetables together to cook and she would just find different leftover ingredients to use because she can’t afford to waste anything. And that sort of food, is most times the best, especially if you weren't there when it was made. Creativity doesn’t have to be colored or grand, creativity is something born out of necessity and not always loud.
Creativity in crisis means we embrace all our uncertainties without losing our essence, we take deep breaths when everything feels suffocating. Creativity is sitting with ones thoughts and decide to pen down all that comes to mind, this that am doing, writing and all, this is creativity because that's all I have to offer, that's how I can keep going and surviving. We are all unique and should never stop trying, we shouldn't wait for things to be perfect or get better before doing something great and beautiful, this is the best time(in chaos) to do something, to create, to keep moving and to survive.
Creativity in chaos/crisis is about rediscovering oneself amidst all and realizing that you’re capable of more than you could think of, its not making the best of a bad situation so as to impress anyone. It’s about looking fear in the eye and letting it know it can't decide for you, its about holding on to ones dream despite knowing and seeing how blurry it is, its about looking at a situation in the eye and making the best of it.
Creativity in times of crisis can be seen in our everyday life, there are traders finding new ways to sell, artisans inventing new designs, some use their pain to inspire others, and there are people like you and me who refuse to be defined by hardship, I had my fair share when I couldn't continue with my handwork due to an illness, still, am a guy, and theres the need to survive, theres the need to thrive regardless, because that’s what creativity truly is, the audacity to dream when the world tells you to settle. We might not always have control over what happens, but we can choose how to respond and that response, no matter how small, is where our creativity lies and shines. The goal is always never to let the light go off, it must keep shining either way.
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