Continuing on with life in a Pandemic is a difficult, daunting task. How can you be expected to go back to school and keep learning when everywhere you go is a reminder of this pandemic, causing you to worry about friends and family? How can you get to a place where you are not overwhelmed by negativity? 

Negative thoughts are bound to swim around your head, drawing you into the depths of despair with no escape. But this is not true; you may be drowning but you can take a step back from reality. You can find something beautiful in this midst of chaos to admire, something good about or in your life. This spark of light can be a flower, a friend, or even a cup of tea. This reminds us that there is still good in the world and in our lives, no matter how small. 

Art, or any creative outlet, has also been an invaluable tool I use to overcome my fear, anger, and confusion the last few months have brought us. Specifically scribble art. You may be reading this asking how is scribbling going to help? The ‘scribble technique’ was originally used by art therapists with children to create a safe environment for them to explore and express their fears. It is usually used as a way for clients to make stories out of the scribbles, usually pertaining to their own life and whatever trauma or chain of events they have experienced. I have found that this technique helps me find the root of my problems allowing me to create and explore solutions. 

Items you will need include: 

• Two or more pieces of paper; even computer paper is perfect. I
• One normal pencil 
• One colored pencil or a highlighter 
• A space to work
• If you so choose, as many colored pencils or normal graphite pencils as you desire 

To begin, take a piece of paper, pick up a graphite pencil, close your eyes, and scribble for a few seconds. When you open your eyes, look at your scribble and take a colored pencil, outline the pictures you see. I chose to only pick one scribble-picture that stood out the most to me and drew it. Most of the time I found flowers and plants in my scribbles so when I moved into my dorm, I took a few plants with me so that when I am stuck in a bad place, I can look at them, take a step back and realize that everything is going to be okay in the end; it may take some time, but this storm will pass. 

This scribble technique is an amazing tool that leads to an emotional catharsis. I have found that by doing this along with art for fun has stopped negativity from building up inside. If you do choose to try this, please post your thoughts into the comments section. I would love to know if this helped you!