In and Out

Our first inhalation is at the occasion of our birth; our final exhalation is at the moment of death. Between those two moments lies the entirety of our existence on earth. Breathe in; breathe out…over and over again.

By day, our eyes are open and we are involved in the external world. By night, our eyes close and the mind turns inward, allowing the body to rest.

When we turn our attention inward, we can reflect, think, ponder, wonder, consider, plan and imagine. When we take action, speak, write, create, move, dance, fight, go and do, our attention is focused outward.

In and out. One state cannot exist without the other. We need them both.

When we engage both the inward and the outward, we are fully integrated and experiencing life. Thoughtful conversation, attunement, expression of emotion, creation of art, and participating in therapy are instances where we benefit from turning inward in order to express outwardly.

Art therapy is the act of going in (inhale, inspiration, intuitive, invention, internal, inside, intelligence, introvert, integration) and externalizing (exhale, expression, excellence, extol, examine, exaggerate, extreme, extrovert.). First we think then we speak or create.

In and out keep us in balance. Art therapy can help us find balance in our lives.