A February Experiment: Plunge, Paint, Poem!

In the spirit of flow and dipping my toes into some new activities (literally and figuratively), I have I came up with a fun February challenge (not coincidentally, February happens to be the shortest month.)

The challenge is to do a cold plunge in our nearby lake, take a picture at my plunge then use the picture to create a watercolor painting, and also write a poem to go with the whole experience every day in February.

I will be documenting the challenge here and you can follow me on Notes for daily updates and invitations throughout the month.

A little backstory:

As the girl who moved to San Diego for college to avoid cold winters, I am perhaps the most surprised to admit to you all that I am a cold weather convert. After a New Year’s Day cold plunge, I have been plunging most days (every day since January 9th!) in our high 30s lake water and I love it. I have more energy, I’m sleeping better (which is a big deal), but more than anything, the whole experience is something akin to prayer for me. The grounding, the stillness, the intentional seeking of discomfort, how I know I’m showing up for myself.

Additionally, I consider photography, watercolor, and poetry to be my “non-dominant” creative skills. I’m hoping a commitment to daily practice will help decrease perfectionism and expand my creative toolbox. I also just want to have fun!

Come for the gorgeous scenery, stay for the sub-par painting ;)

I would love to make this challenge interactive, so please let me know if there’s anything you want to commit to doing more of in February by leaving a comment below.

Now, onto each day’s result:

Above is what I completed from February 1st-February 28th (with a few flu days in there that I missed).

Here is the compilation of paintings for February:

I am having so much fun, I don’t want to stop. I don’t have a set goal, but I’m just going to keep going until further notice.

I’d love to know! What’s your favorite poem or painting so far?!