A Slow Practice in Perception and Creativity

This summer, I’ve committed to a slow practice. 

I’m retaking Aletheia’s Unfolding Deeply Expanded States of Awareness, the course where I first learned Dreamwork and how to unfold dreams. One of the resources mentioned was Betty Edwards’ Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. This immediately caught my attention.

I’ve always considered myself creative —I grew up dancing and immersed in theater arts. But drawing? It tends to stop me in my tracks. Over the years, I’ve taken art classes and workshops and always feel proud for showing up, even if I don’t identify as a “visual artist.” Still, there’s always a moment in those workshops that feels hard. And often, I rush through it instead of staying with the discomfort. I get creative—not with the art, but with finding ways to skip over the challenge. I end up with a finished piece but miss the deeper invitation of the creative process itself.

When I revisited the DRSB website, something called me. I saw a gentle but direct way to nurture this fear. I discovered this isn’t about drawing at all—it’s about perception. The real practice is seeing. Learning how to see differently.

Betty Edwards teaches that drawing isn’t a talent, it’s a skill. It’s a way of seeing. She invites us into the brain's right hemisphere—what she calls “R-mode”—the space of direct experience, deep perception, intuition, and presence. It’s the part of the mind that sees shapes, contours, light, and shadow, rather than concepts and categories. In contrast, the left hemisphere—L-mode—is our verbal, linear, analytical center. It analyzes, names, counts, plans, compares, and keeps time. It’s fast, efficient, brilliant, and helpful. But when it takes on a task like drawing (or dancing, or writing, or listening deeply), it tends to overstep, jumping in with language and logic, even when those aren’t the tools the task calls for. When we let L-mode lead, we draw what we think we see, not what’s actually there.

In the DRSB method, the first exercise is drawing a self-portrait. Without training the eye, the L-mode tends to lead: we see “an eye” and draw our concept of an eye. Same with a nose or a mouth. My first attempt looked like something a 6-year-old might draw. Which makes great sense, because that might be the last time I really tried to draw. It’s not easy to appreciate your child-like creation! But it turns out our drawing ability is often frozen in time, stopped at the age when we gave up trying. This is where the practice of Parts Work can also assist.

In Aletheia coaching, we talk about “Parts”—aspects of ourselves that hold particular roles or stories. We all have Parts that want to protect us, help us belong, keep us safe, or keep us moving forward. And we often have Parts that carry hurts or fears from earlier in life. In my case, when I sit down to draw, it’s not just my hand holding the pencil—it’s also a younger Part, maybe a discouraged one, maybe one that was once told “You’re not good at this.” Or who compares her skills to others. And it’s not long before other familiar Parts show up: the inner critic or the planner who wants a tidy, successful outcome.

These Parts might comfortably live in the left hemisphere. They’re verbal, strategic, and judgmental. They like certainty and control. And while they serve a purpose, they’re not always helpful in creative or exploratory spaces. They often rush to take over the moment.

But when I slow down and notice them—not fight them, not silence them, just notice-I begin to disidentify. I remember that I am not my inner critic. I am not this fear of failing. I can thank those Parts for trying to protect me. 

And what shifts from that often lands me in a resourceful state, a deeper access to creativity, and the present moment. 

So I’m practicing setting aside the concepts to see what’s actually there. Not “an eyebrow,” but this shape, this curve, seeing this space in between. 

Betty Edwards describes R-mode as a state that’s highly focused, wordless, timeless, and engaged. You might recognize it from other practices—meditation, dancing, music, yoga, or being in nature. It’s a shift in consciousness, one we all move in and out of, often without realizing. But when we begin to notice it and attune to it, something beautiful unfolds.

For me, this exploration is only partially about drawing. It’s primarily about pace. It’s about slowing down enough to see clearly. The competitive L-mode gets there fastest, and it often takes over. But with awareness, we can gently invite it to step aside and make space for something quieter, deeper, more connected. It's important to remember that the brain's hemispheres are interconnected and work together. And unfolding with Parts Work can support integration. 

Here’s another way to practice. Take a walk in nature at this slower pace. Take a walk with the right side of your brain. Practice this way of seeing: pausing, softening, perceiving with freshness—as if seeing the world for the first time. The sounds, the smells, the textures, the colors. Just last week, I took a slow walk in my neighborhood, and looked freshly at a patch of orange California Poppies and saw flashes of pink I’d never noticed before. This is the gateway to awe and wonder.

It’s not just about drawing. It’s about perceiving life differently.

This summer, I’m letting go of the rush to get somewhere. To some idealized finished place or piece. I’m slowing down enough to be in the middle, the space in between. The sometimes messy but often wondrous part of the process. The part I used to skip. I’m drawing and walking and seeing with the right side of the brain, and letting it set the pace. 

If you’re interested in learning more, I’ve also written quite a bit about parts work in this blog on befriending your inner critic. 

I also cover a bit of Parts Work in my learning program, Following the Thread of Our Core Needs.

You may also consider turning to nature for her wisdom, and this can be included in coaching engagements as an Earth Dream Walk.

I’d love to hear from you if coaching might help support your creative discovery. We start exactly where you are and explore the threads together.

Reach out for a free discovery call.