Day 252: Adult Coloring

I just finished my first “adult” coloring page. It took about two months to complete. I didn’t work on it every day, and most of the time I would only color in a few patterns before I put the pens away. I used Sharpie fine tips and had to put another couple of sheets underneath the paper so the ink wouldn’t bleed onto the table. But sometimes I would color for hours, mainly deciding which colors to choose and where. I thought a lot about the right choice of colors. There were some mistakes, but no one will ever know.

They say that this type of coloring for adults is like a type of meditation. I definitely agree. Usually, I would turn on some music just to have something playing in the background. I easily could zone out into the picture, becoming focused one color at a time, similar to the meditation practice of focusing on the breath. When I am that focused, my mind doesn’t drift as much. The flow of thoughts turns into a trickle and even to droplets. Coloring something like this is also an effective way of subsiding stress. There were a couple of days when I just needed to stop the hamster wheel in my head; so, I picked up the pens and started coloring.

This has been a long and satisfying experience. I don’t know what I will do with the original paper. It will probably end up getting thrown away eventually. But that’s okay. The point of the coloring is not necessarily the picture at the end but the experience of creating the picture. I can look at the picture and appreciate my hard work, however childish some may see it. But taking some time out of each day to add to the picture is where the true value lies. It’s nice to see it complete. It may be nicer to see a blank one on my desk in a week or so.