The creative Process

I have been glazing this week. Taking the plain white porcelain clay I have bisquie fired, and adding the glazes that will make it look like this, I hope.What I do has so many stages to it. I love best creating from  raw clay, and then doing  the final high fire in the kiln that creates the finished piece.This is a small "Porcelain Pueblo" piece, that has a lot of steps before I get to what you see.
 I guess that exists in every creative process, actually in so many things we do in life. First we get the idea,and that in itself can be a long, even painful process. Then we start to implement it. There can be  many steps in between. For me it involves a lot of clean up. I make the clay item and then I have to let it dry to what is called " leather hard". It still has moisture, but is firm enough to clean up with a sponge. Somehow, there are always small lumps or flaws I want to smooth out.
 Maybe a corollary to  interactions among  people? Often things aren't  as smooth or clear as desired. We want  to make sure our point of view is clearly heard by  that person.Often I find it helps me to  go back and check in with them to see what they actually heard me say. That can be a surprise.At least it gives me a chance to smooth out those little bits of misunderstanding that cling, like the unwanted bits of clay. It is all a creative process.