The past year forced us to deal with our grief – personal and collective – in isolation, far from everyone we love and everything we found comfort in. Helpless, anxious, angry, sad and often numb, I scrolled through bad news, desperate appeals for help and stories of apathy exhibited by those elected to serve us. I spent my days juggling work, making calls to hospitals and ambulance services, and cooking food for Covid-19 patients isolated away from their families.
As long as I kept myself occupied, I could deal with whatever was going on around me. As effective as my plan was, it was also exhausting and I needed to find something to do just for myself. I came across “acrylic pouring” on Instagram – a painting technique where you pour different colours on a canvas and twist and tilt it till you like what you see.
It seemed easy to do and the paints and canvasses were available in my neighborhood market. The experience has helped me manage my anxiety during these difficult times. Somehow, the chaos on the canvas helped bring some calm and clarity to my day (and often nights). I have painted and re-painted over a hundred canvases and still go back to it whenever I need to ground myself.
Read all the articles in the Comfort zone series here.