Inspiration from Crete and Ferran Adria

Its time to get back on track!

I've had a very good excuse for not updating my blog.  I managed to create a beautiful baby girl, and she is now 13 months old.  It is time to pick up again where I left off!  It may sound like I view this experience as a distraction to my creative pursuit.  On the contrary, I see it as part of this journey.  A very, very precious part! 

So much has happened during this past year, and I am very excited to share some of these adventures and creative pursuits! It includes visual journaling, music and traveling.  So keep watching this space....

In September 2010, during the 6^th month of my pregnancy, we visited Crete and stayed in Saria – a town on the east coast of the island.  Although this is an extremely arid and remote area, farmers were able to reclaim the land after virtually all life was wiped out due to the volcanic eruption that made nearby Santorini the spectacularly beautiful place that it is today.  After centuries of patience and perseverance to create something with extremely limited resources, this area is now renowned for its wine, olives, olive oil and fruit. Today it is known as the food basket of Crete.  It seems that centuries of perseverance and outrageously creative problem solving were the behavioural elements that made it possible for these farmers to thrive in this harsh environment against all odds.

A while ago, I watched a CNN documentary about the work of Ferran Adria, creator, food alchemist and chef of the world famous El Bulli Restaurant in Spain. Adria decided to close the restaurant at the end of 2011 in order to venture into new projects.  This was a decision that took everybody by surprise.  But something that he told a group of creative consultants during a brainstorming session resonated with me. He said, "If its not revolutionary - I don't want it."  It seemed to be this very ability to be unsentimental and leave behind his present success story when still at its height, that propels him forward to fresh and exciting ventures. Although his new venture seemed somewhat undefined at the start, he took himself seriously and was not shy to express his ideas.  

I found the Crete adventure and Adria’s approach extremely inspiring, and I took 6 pointers from these incredibly creative and determined individuals:

1. Don't compromise - if it's not part of your vision, say it and don't settle for less

2. Be unsentimental - don't hold on to old successes

3. Embrace change - move forward, it is refreshing and energizing

4. Take yourself seriously - only then will others do the same

5. Be confident about your ideas – your view of the world is unique and it counts

6. Be relentless in your determination and perseverance to make your dream a reality

“When you have something to say – the world will listen.”