Some cats, some hedgehogs

and SOCK questions

After I recently shared about my sketchbook process and tools some of you said you were beginning or continuing your own illustrated journals (Yay!!) and asked me for more details so here goes:

When I wake up in the mornings, still half asleep, I continue to lay in bed a few minutes and I “thought watch". This means I watch my thoughts, as if they are clouds floating by, without commentary or judgement. I keep a few index cards and a pen on my nightstand to make notes, if needed, to help me remember all of the thought topic-clouds that floated through.

For example since I hurt my ankle recently I've been focused on how to take care of it and the rest of me too. This was one of the reoccurring “thought clouds” when I woke up - so I responded to, conversed with, that thought using my SOCK questions and this sketchbook page was the result during breakfast one morning.

I use SOCK questions because when approaching my sketchbook, asking “what inspires" is too vague, and allows the blankness of a page to loom large.

Typically SOCK questions are discussed as useful in conversation with children: instead of asking “how was school" - which often only gets a one word reply - one can ask Specific Open-ended Creative Kid-friendly questions so as to have more of a conversation. (Here's a link for more details about SOCK questions and kids.)

While I try to approach all of my art projects in the spirit of a 6 year old sprawled out on the floor, crayons strewn around while coloring, I am happily an adult. So I've adapted the SOCK questions for my adult self:

SPECIFIC: what animals, objects, movements, colors, shapes, patterns, lines caught your eye/mood recently?

OPEN ENDED: how did you feel when you saw [insert], what thoughts arise when you see/remember [insert], what surprised you? What made you smile? What has been reoccurring in your mind?

CREATIVE: what's something funny [amusing, poignant, thoughtful... etc emotion] that plays with the colors, animals etc that you saw in real life or that came to mind re the above questions

(K)CULTURE: what did you spend the most time doing recently? What are the people around you doing/saying? What events occurred recently? What memories arose? What conversations/topics/actions reoccur? What are you curious about? What did you feel strongly about? What was most interesting/relaxing/pleasant?

For example recently I've specifically noticed my collection of pens, various line drawings and a book I have about hedgehogs. With those things in mind I asked myself open-ended questions about my feelings, about the creative ways I could combine pens, hedgehogs and the (k)cultural acts of drawing. This was the resulting sketchbook page during another breakfast.

My sketchbook page above with the cat in it was also created using my SOCK questions. The pages in my recently published sketchbook A.M. Sketching: drawings done at breakfast were done this way too.

Now you know more about what I've meant when I say I have regular conversations with myself and use them to start a day gently. I first learned to do self-conversations when I illustrated Dr. Bob's Emotional Repair Program First Aid Kit and since then you could say I've pulled up my SOCKs. 😉

Speaking of self-reflection I found this newsletter edition by

Well Today

insightful and encouraging.

The Importance of Self-Reflection

Besides trying to be careful of my own self-talk (and looking at past sketchbook pages to remember helpful self-talk phrases) during my ankle recovery I've had assistance from Rusty, the dachshund extraordinaire, who is keeping a careful eye on my hurt foot with its green and yellow crocheted toe warmer, to make sure it stays elevated.

During Hawkeye’s patient duty shift (yes. the Hawkeye from MASH fame) we're reading and quite enjoying “Iron Hearted Violet" by Kelly Barnhill.

My hurt foot has inspired me to make a new get well soon greeting card - which is available here.

I write, make art and read to show myself that I'm listening. I hope you're finding ways to listen compassionately to yourself too.

BTW: Paid subscribers can download any or all of my 13 ebooks from this index page. Thank you to all subscribers for being here!