Creating a Life You Love
Written on August 20th, 2026
The She-Shed and What It Represents
Look closely at the image at the top of this page.
There is an easel.
Paintbrushes.
A canvas that is clearly not finished.
Pottery taking shape on a worktable.
Flowers outside the window.
A clothesline in the sunshine.
Nothing in the room feels overly polished.
And that is exactly why I wanted it here.
The image could also very well have been a garage full of tools, a welder, a project being built in the background or a workbench with tools and a visible project happening. Any of these images would have also portrayed what this room represents.
When we hear the word “creative,” a lot of us immediately decide it doesn’t apply to us.
We picture artists.
Painters.
People who can draw something beautiful without erasing it seventeen times.
People who can look at a blank canvas and somehow know what to do with it.
Meanwhile, some of us can barely draw a straight line with a ruler.
But creativity was never meant to be limited to an art studio or a garage.
Creating a life you love can look very ordinary.
It can look like planting flowers because they make you happy.
Trying a recipe you’ve never made before.
Rearranging a room because you want it to feel more peaceful.
Planning a weekend trip simply because you’ve never been there.
Writing a note to someone you love.
Restoring a classic car.
Rebuilding a lawn mower engine.
Building a cedar chest.
Trying something and discovering you are terrible at it.
Trying again anyway.
The unfinished canvas in this room matters to me.
It isn’t there because I forgot to finish it.
It is there because life is rarely finished.
We are always becoming.
Always adjusting.
Always trying something new.
Always figuring out what belongs in the picture and what doesn’t.
Sometimes we wait for inspiration to arrive before we begin.
We think we need the perfect idea.
The perfect amount of time.
The perfect supplies.
The perfect plan.
But creating rarely works that way.
You start with what you have.
You make a little mess.
You learn.
You change your mind.
You paint over something.
You try again.
And somewhere in the middle of all that, you realize you are no longer simply reacting to life.
You are participating in it.
That is what I wanted this room to represent.
God is the Creator, and Scripture reminds us that we are made in His image.
There is something beautiful about that.
Maybe the creative part of you isn’t waiting for permission.
Maybe it is simply waiting for you to use it.
So pick up the brush.
Pick up the hammer.
Plant the flowers.
Try the recipe.
Take the trip.
Move the furniture.
Start the project.
Make something.
It doesn’t have to be perfect.
It just has to be yours.