One of the disadvantages of being creative is that it seems to come with a lack of organization.

Yes, it’s a bit of a cliche and stereotype — but it does seem to fit me. I often end up doing things at the last minute and unfortunately it means I can miss out on things.

Just today, I discovered something I may have missed out on — the opportunity for the Cassville Arts Council to partner with the library on the summer reading challenge.

Unfortunately, the planning is done and so we can’t be officially partnered with them. However, the challenge just started June 2, so there is still plenty of time for all of you to take advantage of it.

The summer reading challenge this year is themed “Color Your World” and it combines encouraging reading and expanding your creativity. Those are two things that I love and I’m so excited to see them combined in this way.

Various events based on the theme are scheduled for the different library branches. You can also meet challenges and earn badges, not just by reading, but doing other activities, many of which are art focused. When you register for the challenge you can get some art supplies (while supplies last) to help you with some of the challenges.

For some, reading may not be associated with the arts, especially if you only read for school or work. Books happen to be a big part of my creative world and I find that when I go through periods of reading less — my creativity seems to drop. I don’t know if there is a direct causal link between them, but there definitely is a correlation.

Books and reading are foundational to so many artistic endeavors. Besides the art of literature and poetry itself, there are so many books and resources about art and art history. That doesn’t even take into account how many movies, plays, and television shows are adaptations from books.

Many words and phrases that we use in everyday life come from books and the arts. “Go down the rabbit hole” comes from “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Cliffhanger” comes from novelist Thomas Hardy, where a character is literally hanging off of a cliff.

It’s really easy to get caught up in the day to day slog of work, kids, neighbors, bills, etc. Sometimes, we need outside motivation to help us counteract the sweeping current of life. Let the summer reading challenge be that for you. If you have kids, make sure they participate by joining with them.

If you don’t have kids, do it for yourself. Join with a friend and encourage each other to do it together.

Hopefully I’ll be able to get organized enough to partner with the library on future artistic projects. In the meantime, register for the summer reading challenge and let it “Color Your World” https://www.blrlibrary. com/post/coloryour- world-this-summer.

P.S. If you are looking for other artistic activities this summer, join with the Cassville Arts Council as we put on “The Lightning Thief — the Percy Jackson Musical”. Rehearsals start June 16th with performances Aug 21-24. More information can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/cassvilleartscouncil.

Trent Oliphant is the Founder and President of the Cassville Arts Council. He may be reached at cassvillearts@gmail.com.