Chapter Twenty-Eight. Habitat

The tallest trees in the world can be found only along a narrow strip of the California coast. And the coast redwood isn’t just the tallest tree on planet earth; it’s one of the most majestic as well. These trees tower up to 379 feet tall, and they create their own ecosystems that sustain life in many forms. Redwoods are thirsty trees, absorbing water from rivers and creeks when they can, or soaking up 40 percent of their water from the fog in the dry summer months. California isn’t just the perfect habitat for these trees—it’s the only natural habitat where they can thrive. Plant a redwood somewhere else and it might grow, but not well. The stressed appearance of the tree will betray its desire to return home. There is only one place on the planet where these trees reach their full height.

If we look at redwood trees through an anthropomorphic lens, we might say that they like to be surrounded by good friends. The network is the secret to their success. And these trees need the obvious inspiration of water and sun, but they can also absorb inspiration in unlikely ways. Redwood trees are like those artists who soak up and breathe in sustenance from the air—like Ernest Hemingway wandering the streets of Paris; it’s not just the obvious sights but the mood and atmosphere that most directly fill the pages of his books. At first glance, redwoods may seem simple, but the more you look the more you realize that they are complex and wonderful trees that flourish in only one place due to their specific habitat needs.

The perfect redwood habitat is not a single tree by itself but a forest. Height and health cannot be achieved in any other way. The habitat determines how well the trees will do. So it is with our creative soul—there are habitats that help us thrive and others that just won’t work. Just as with the redwood tree, there is an ideal habitat for your own creative growth. Especially if you want to create your best work and live a more meaningful life, you need to deepen your awareness of how a habitat can help or hinder your growth. This may mean constructing greenhouses to nourish your budding ideas, building watering systems for your full-grown thoughts, or changing your environment altogether to better suit your needs.

When the children’s author Roald Dahl moved to the country he took a similar approach. Dahl wanted a place where he could be free from the world. So he had a friend build a small hut in the garden. This hut was his home away from home. Nearly every day he would walk out to the hut and begin by sharpening six Number 2 pencils, and he wouldn’t take a break until they were all dull. When asked about his writing process he once replied, “It’s really quite easy. I go down to my little hut, where it’s tight and dark and warm, and within minutes I can go back to being six or seven or eight again.” For Dahl, the hut was his sanctuary and the space where his books came to life. It was almost like a fort for a grown-up kid. Dahl explained that in the hut, “You become a different person... and go into a completely different world and time disappears.”

After being exiled from France, Victor Hugo found shelter on the British island of Guernsey. It was there that he lived and wrote for over 15 years. Hugo set to work right away and turned the glassed-in conservatory on the roof of his home into his writing den. It was a sparse room with walls made of glass, a small bed, and a fireproof chest where he kept his manuscripts. A wooden pulpit served as a desk, and he wrote standing up looking out across the sea to France. From this perch, which he called “the lookout,” Hugo wrote extensively and created some of his most original and celebrated works, including Les Misérables. Living in exile and looking out over the sea filled his work with an undeniable depth. And the pulpit was fitting, almost as if it helped him preach the truths about which he so much cared.

The point isn’t to go out and build a shack or write on your roof—this isn’t about copying somebody else’s space. Like different varieties of trees, we all have unique habitat needs. The point is to start thinking about your space and about how it can help your creativity flourish and grow. As a photographer, author, and teacher, I need a space that is conducive to creative ideas. So when I moved into my studio, I took time to think about the design. I slowly brought in artifacts, photographs, and objects that remind me of who I am and who I want to become. So now when I step into my studio, I feel like I’m stepping into the life that I want to lead.

Keith Carter is a celebrated fine art photographer, a mentor, and a friend. His home is an intricate work of art. It’s filled with curiosities, travel mementos, sculptures, and art. When you visit his home you instantly understand how Keith sees the world—he finds beauty even in broken and discarded things. It’s no wonder his photographs are filled with the same. When his wife Patricia was diagnosed with cancer it was devastating news. The doctors told them that Patricia would be hospitalized in a nearby city for a few months. So Keith packed up the car with carpets, paintings, photographs, books, and art objects. He was intent on transforming her small, bleak hospital room into a work of art. Like a little oasis, her room became a sanctuary during that difficult time. That’s what creative people do. They do not accept the status quo but create something out of nothing so that life isn’t so bleak.

If you are feeling like your cubicle is dull or you don’t have enough space, let Keith Carter be an inspiration for you, and transform whatever space it is that you have. We all need places where we can feel more alive. Life is too busy, difficult, and overwhelming not to try.

If you don’t have a dedicated studio or workshop, that’s OK. There are other ways to define and create your own personal greenhouse for growth. This might be as simple as selecting a coffee shop that inspires you to open your mind. Or maybe you could rope off a corner of your garage and dedicate it to making art. Designing a creative habitat takes effort, but creativity rarely shows up when it is forced. The trick is to find a space that blends the idea of work and play. You have to build the habitat with that in mind. As L. P. Jacks once said, “A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation.” Ideally, you want to create a space that allows you to let go of worry and fear so that you can play and tinker with ideas.