To Zentangle Part One

To Zentangle

What is Zentangle? Yoga for the Brain?

          Zentangle has become a lot of things to a lot of different people.  For me, at its most basic, Zentangle is something to do while I watch tv. Apparently, according to sources throughout the internet, it’s also a form of mediation.  I wouldn’t disagree.

            Let me start by saying that I can NOT draw.  Seriously. I’m the world’s worst artist and I admit to that openly.  I’ve always doodled, as I assume most people do when sitting on the phone or whatnot.  Spirals and tornados and trees and suns that look more like something a five year old would produce than the more mature designs of an adult. Let me take that back, that’s an insult to five year olds…

            I did my high school co-op with a junior kindergarten class a long, long time ago and as a special treat, the teacher set up project with a plate making company.  All of the children had the opportunity to draw a picture on a plate sized piece of paper that would be transferred to an actually plate.  Pretty cool huh? And as a helper, I had the chance to make one too.  So did the other girl I did co-op with.  When the plates came in, my fellow helper and I tore into the box, commenting on each plate.  She got a hold of mine and said “This one didn’t put their name on it. No wonder! My dog could draw better than this”.  Yeah. My drawing was worse than a typical 5-year old’s.  But, don’t cry for me Argentina, I had other talents and accepted my lack at artistic ability with self-deprecating laughter. 

            Then I discovered Zentangle.  As a highly anxious person, I’m always looking for new ways to relax and de-stress.  So I gave it a try, and you know what? It’s as easy as it sounds.  There are no mistakes.  You can screw up as much as you like and still, it’s art. Below is a picture of my first Zentangle.  It took me two nights of tv “watching” (it’s not like a lot of actual watching gets done) to complete this one. 

           

          The results: A fun picture to look at, less smoking, less munching during a show, and something to be somewhat proud of.  The next day I took a trip to the dollar store, bought a larger pad, a crapload of black pens, some pencils and a good eraser.  For under 20$ I now have a hobby that is supposed to relax me, ignite my creativity, provide me with personal insights and increase my own self-worth.  Not a bad deal.