The arrival day, welcome gathering and first full day were wonderful but a bit overwhelming for this introvert, if I'm honest. After a social breakfast and a big errand run (we're about 45 minutes away from a larger town with shops etc - this 'town' has a population of about 70 from what I understand!) and lunch with the group as well yesterday, I went up to my studio thinking, ok, this is the moment you can finally start making something! And then.... nothing. My energy was so spent that I just sat down and started worrying. I worried about the light in my studio; I worried about the lack of all the gear that I'm used to having at my fingertips; I worried about how many croissants I'd consumed in the past few days (jk, no such thing as too many croissants) and I started to feel completely immobilized. And then that feeling, of course, led to more serious worries.
What if I came all this way and I can't do this? Like, what if I make nothing while I'm here?
When those kinds of thoughts start wedging their way in, sitting in the studio is a bad idea (for me, at least.) So even though it was the first chunk of time I'd had free to spend in the studio since my arrival, I left. I had a quiet moment in my room in Maison de la Vigne in the village, I went for a wee walk, and I looked for light. Because light always helps.