Colette Lafia: Art as Prayer~The Creative Process as a Path to the Divine

In this episode of the Made to Make Podcast, host Shannon Grissom talks with spiritual director and author Colette Lafia about the powerful connection between creativity and spirituality. Together they explore how creativity can become more than a skill or hobby—it can be a sacred practice that connects us with the divine.

Colette shares how creative expression can deepen self-awareness, nurture our inner lives, and help us cultivate a meaningful relationship with ourselves, others, and something greater. From simple rituals like lighting a candle before beginning creative work to free-writing exercises that unlock inspiration, this conversation offers practical ways to bring intention, gratitude, and spiritual awareness into your creative process.

Drawing from insights in her books Comfort and Joy, Seeking Surrender, The Divine Heart, and Leaving the Shore, Colette encourages creators to see their work as an ongoing dialogue—one that invites curiosity, openness, and trust.

If you’re an artist, writer, maker, or anyone seeking deeper meaning in the creative process, this episode will inspire you to embrace creativity as a sacred path.

✨ In this episode we discuss:
• Creativity as a sacred act and spiritual discipline
• How artistic materials and mediums can become teachers
• The connection between contemplative practices and creativity
• Free writing exercises to unlock inspiration
• Simple rituals to bring intention and presence to creative work
• Maintaining creative energy and nurturing the inner artist

Transcript

Shannon Grissom (00:00)
Welcome to Made to Make. Here we talk about creativity, the challenges that come with it, and why we keep showing up anyway. Because hey, we are all Made to Make.

Welcome to the Made to Made podcast. I'm your host Shannon Grissom. Today I'm joined by Colette Lafia spiritual director, retreat leader and author to talk about creativity as a sacred path. Welcome.

Colette Lafia (00:34)
Thank you so much. Wonderful to be here with you, Shannon.

Shannon Grissom (00:38)
⁓ you know, I just truly enjoyed, I've got, Leaving This Shore. And when I first picked it up, it was my intention to read it straight through and then do it as a practice. But that's not what happened. That's totally, you know, there were other plans for me. So, ⁓ so then what I would do, and then I thought, well, maybe I'll just do one a day.

Even so, I read one and then it takes whatever time it takes to work through the reading. So I'm really enjoying it. I just have to say thank you before we even start the show because it's just a tremendous resource.

Colette Lafia (01:21)
Wonderful, so good to hear that.

Shannon Grissom (01:24)
So when did you first, it seems like you were always creative, when did you realize that it was more than just a form of self-expression?

Colette Lafia (01:35)
I think for me, I was thinking about that. As you said, I've always been creative. So I think there's been an inkling that the creativity was coming from a very deep place in me. But I'd say it really crystallized. I was probably in my late 30s and I ⁓ was in a painting class. Now I'm not a trained painter or anything like that. So ⁓ I just began painting at a very difficult time in my life and just needing some expression.

And so... ⁓

I ended up going to a workshop at Esalen with my teacher Lee Himes and we were just given like big sheets of paper to be free. Just go for it. And one early morning I was in the art barn, ⁓ hadn't slept well, and I just started making marks, ⁓ drawing, maybe using some pastels. And in that moment, I felt the canvas was...

kind of whispering back to me. And I could tell that I was in a relationship, that something was asking to be listened to, something deep was moving in me, and that this was very secret what was happening. So I think in that moment, when I could see more that I was in this deep relationship, it sort of awakened me to the sacredness of what was happening in the creative act.

Shannon Grissom (03:07)
Wow, what a beautiful experience. I know for me when ⁓ I was thinking about the different surfaces I work on, Canvas gives. So it gives when you play with it. And I've been working on rigid boards. And I was thinking about that in more than a bigger sense. Why am I working with something that's rigid?

that doesn't give back, but it gives back in a different way. And so once I real about, you know, I went, yeah.

Colette Lafia (03:43)
I love that though when you create, it's like ⁓ your materials can teach you something or awaken you to something or ⁓ they're not barriers, they're actually tools like that invite ⁓ us to recognize something.

Shannon Grissom (04:05)
you

Yes, I agree. They're extension of me and they help me tune in. And you know, when I use a palette knife, ⁓ I have less control and I'm conscious of that, of giving it up, just offering it up and seeing what happens where with the brush, I'm really tempted to make sure it's perfect. And ⁓ I've been doing a lot of knife work lately so that I do loosen up so that I do listen.

The tools make a difference. So you often blend contemplate, I'm definitely a contemplative painter, but you do that with your spiritual practice. So tell me about that.

Colette Lafia (04:37)
Yeah, they do.

So with my spiritual practice, I engage in some of the classic forms, ⁓ what they call centering prayer, Lectio Divinia Visio Divina ⁓ gazing, things like that. So my contemplative practice and my creative practice really feed each other. So I would say... ⁓

by learning within myself how to stay with something, find, to get below the surface, to get less reactive and sort of draw on a deeper well within. ⁓

when I do that in my contemplative practice, I see then that I can do that more easily in my creative practice. So, and then in my creative practice, when I allow myself more freedom, more spaciousness, more risk taking, I can then do that in my spiritual practice. So, I love the way that they combine. And for me, creativity is spiritual and spiritual is creative.

We're in all of creation. We ourselves are just born as creative beings in a very creative, dynamic ⁓ world. And so by essence, everything is creating all the time.

Shannon Grissom (06:26)
Yes, yes. So what would you say for individuals who don't think they're creative, who are missing that?

Colette Lafia (06:35)
Well, I think first of all, challenge your mindset. I mean, I think especially here in where we live in the US, so much of creativity is about the product and so much of creativity is about ⁓ competency of skill.

And if you've ever worked with kids, I was a school librarian for 20 plus years, know, ⁓ just watching them be creative, you know, it's not about competency. It's not about skill. Yes, it's good. grow in that. And that's important to master ⁓ our skill. But it's really to it's really something else. It's really impulse. It's instinct. It's curiosity. So people that don't think

they're creative or they think the creative people are the artists I think they're missing out on just the essence of who they are I mean there's creativity and in in listening to a friend and you know baking muffins and tending a garden and even the way you might fold things in your drawer

So I think it's important to broaden it. And I think it's really important for all of us to reclaim our creativity. We've allowed it to become a commodity. We've allowed it to be those other people. We've allowed it, like if it doesn't make money or enough money, then we don't value it. And I think we should challenge that.

Shannon Grissom (08:17)
Hmm, I agree. I started off...

just for the, as far as painting, just for the pure joy of it, just for the release, just for doing that. And then I got into the business mode. And so there was that struggle between making money and, and, and now at this age, I'm back to where I was. I'm, I'm painting for the pure joy. I'm not painting unless it's a commission and I take only those that will bring me

But so my purpose is joy and love and...

And not necessarily. I had somebody say to only approach the canvas when you were feeling perfect. And I'm like, no, I need to express whatever's in there needs to come through me and out. so so now I'm in the process of doing that. And I love what you say about.

acknowledging the Divine. I used to light a candle before I'd start each session and that was for me a way of opening up and acknowledging that it's not all me. And then at the end I would blow the candle out so that I'd remember to say thank you.

Colette Lafia (09:45)
You know, it's so beautiful you do that. you know, while writing my poetry book, I really did that same practice every time before I, I was before I wrote, I would light the candle. I would just kind of allow myself to receive and also allow myself to join, you know, what, you know, to join myself with that divine source and to be open and available for what wants to come, what wants to move.

through me so that I could receive. And that was a very sacred process for me. And I love the way you then closed it. It's very much like when we go to pray, that process of doing that.

Shannon Grissom (10:30)
you

So I'm thinking about your prayer, your poem, but it's a prayer. ⁓ Fog. I was really taken by that. Would you read that for us? I would love to hear you read it.

Colette Lafia (10:48)
Yes, thank you. Okay, Falk.

Walking at Sutro Heights Park, a gray ⁓ August fog covers the sky. Pure moisture, dense and wet, drips and bathes my eyelids, hair and cheeks. It holds a longing that will not clear up.

that fills the northern cold California coast dampens my bones, follows me, hides me in its cloak. I long to see bare blue sky on the other side. I even doubt it's there. Grey days, always the wish to lift this wet blanket.

Yet is the secret to trust what I cannot see or feel all the time, Weather you are a teacher of grace.

Shannon Grissom (12:00)
Yes.

Colette Lafia (12:01)
But

was it about that poem that you think struck you?

Shannon Grissom (12:07)
that ⁓ the doubt that happens when you're in the middle and when you're in the thick of things ⁓ and you know there's blue on the other side but ⁓ sometimes it's hard for me to shift even when I know that when you've got something especially something that's long standing going on and so that really was a

a reminder, a call to acknowledge that, and I was thinking about the fog and when you paint fog, there's so much color in the fog. There's so much beauty in the fog. And so I thought...

rather than focusing on that dark gray spot, you know, maybe expand that and look for the blue. for me, when I read that, was like, okay, fog happens. But I don't have to stay there.

Colette Lafia (13:11)
Mmm, yeah, I love that. I love that. And I really like that whether you are a teacher of grace. Yes. You know, allowing us, be present to this. Be present to this. What wants to be seen? What wants to be revealed? ⁓

Shannon Grissom (13:24)
Yeah.

Colette Lafia (13:33)
So I think that's a really, for me, a very important part of creativity is allowing myself to stay steady in whatever it is I'm creating. I know you had asked me a question about, is it inspiration? think, it...

when you're writing do you approach it as discipline, inspiration and surrender? And when I thought about that, I thought that's really an umbrella for commitment. For me, the bigger invitation.

is commitment, commitment to the creative process, commitment to creativity itself, commitment to putting myself in the way of creativity and seeing what wants to come out. So it really reminded me, and there's a grace in that. So commitment and grace really go together.

Shannon Grissom (14:42)
and seeing creativity as a relationship.

and a relationship with yourself, with spirit, with the divine. And not just whatever you're creating, that it all weaves in and out of each other and it's all one thing. And I'm thinking for me on days when I am tired and I might not feel like doing something, I typically press on, but there's a difference between pressing on and acknowledging that you're attending a relationship.

ship. That puts a whole different light on it.

Colette Lafia (15:21)
Oh, I love that so much. I completely agree. I completely agree. Because then you're caring. It's like you're caring for something that values your nurturing, just like your commitment, let's say to a marriage or your commitment to an exercise program or your commitment to a prayer practice. It's the same with your creativity. And if you see it like that, not as a practice, as a relationship, as a tending.

I think it, like you said, it changes the tone of yourself doing it, ⁓ as well as just the tone ⁓ in general. So yeah, I think that's so key what you're talking about is when we move our creativity into a relation, into the framework of relationship. I think there's a real opening there.

Shannon Grissom (16:20)
And that just, know, light bulbs just went on with anything that I might feel challenged with to develop a relationship with it rather than saying, you're a problem.

Colette Lafia (16:38)
Right,

exactly, that's so true. Because you know when you're in a creative process, sometimes it gets hard to sustain it or you think, the challenge I've set for myself. You know, it takes a certain amount of endurance, takes a certain amount of courage, it takes a certain amount of...

sticking with it and I think if you see it as a relationship I think that just changes the whole tone you relate to that. ⁓

Shannon Grissom (17:12)
Hmm.

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Now let's get back to the show. So what do you have a practice that helps you stay open? You're so prolific, so creative. Do you have a practice that helps you stay open or practices that help you stay open and receptive?

Colette Lafia (18:00)
Well, I do think ⁓ I mentioned that I'm a Centering Prayer ⁓ practitioner, which is just a type of meditation. So I do really stay faithful to that. And I think what's valuable in that is

It goes up and down. I so it's not, I don't just judge the experience. Like that was a good meditation. That was not a good meditation. It's just, that was the experience today. So that has helped me to just keep ⁓ showing up, you know, rain or shine or, you know, monkey mind or quiet time. It's, it's, so I'm not judging the outcome all the time. And I think that has made

big difference for me as a practice that feeds into my creativity. So I would say that and I what I find with my writing really helps me is doing a lot of free writing, quick writing. If I'm feeling uninspired, if you want to use that word, I will

just take a quick prompt and I'll just write, I actually use a timer and just write for two or three minutes because I do think creativity is an energy. And so how do you keep that energy moving and flowing is really, really core. Like I said, I'm an untrained painter, visual artist. So for me, that's my ⁓ free zone. I'll just put up paper, there's no rules. I'll just completely.

play and make a mess. I really learned that from my kids at school when I was a librarian. They were just curious and they brought that curiosity so I really appreciated that. And also using my body. I think I love to walk, I love to swim and I do think creativity is energy and so I try to keep my energy healthy and flowing.

Shannon Grissom (20:20)
I was on a walk a couple days ago and I saw a guitar pick on the street and I hadn't been playing much this, you know, the past few weeks and it said flow. And I thought...

Colette Lafia (20:36)
Yeah, see?

Shannon Grissom (20:39)
And I thought this is perfect because the walk, there's so many things that happen on a walk that really fill me up. then, and then if you pay attention, you get signs all along the way.

Colette Lafia (20:51)
Yeah,

I love what you're saying though. It's like really being conscious of what you're tuning into, where you're putting your attention and taking a lot of responsibility for that ⁓ is I think really important as you're mentioning.

Shannon Grissom (21:12)
Yeah, I remember the first time I realized that my thought process was my responsibility and I was like,

Colette Lafia (21:24)
you

I'm done.

Shannon Grissom (21:32)
And then I

was like, okay, I gotta shift this. You know, I've got to shift this. And so I can't say I'm always in the perfect place with my thoughts, but my shifting time has become quicker. And so I tuned into a better station. that way.

Colette Lafia (21:55)
And I love that you're saying that.

Shannon Grissom (21:59)
What, as far as anybody out there, matter what kind of creative mode you're in, do you have a small creative practice that listeners could try this week to just spark something?

Colette Lafia (22:15)
Well, I would say, you know, if you're a writer or like to write, I would definitely say do some fast free writing. So even I'm not, you know, to take take something from this book, for example, and you just take one line like whether you are a teacher of grace and just put that at the top of your line. Turn on a timer. You can get one on your phone, two, three minutes.

And just write, just write really fast. Free write, don't judge yourself, just keep going. If you feel stuck, just repeat the prompt, whether you are a teacher of grace and just go, go, go. Get your energy moving. If you're a visual artist, again, my art teacher would say, give yourself permission to make, you know, five bad pictures. And what she meant by that is don't judge them. So take a small piece of paper.

Take crayons even something as basic as crayons and just and just move move make you know, what does anger feel like? What does sadness feel like and you just make slow quiet or fast lines almost just making marks not trying to make something. So I think just getting your energy energy moving in your body if even put on some music and and just dance even if it's just

moving your arms and swaying. Just get the movement, get your body back to what it knows, to its instinct, to its intuition. ⁓ It knows creativity. It lives in you. And trust that. Trust it. Trust that relationship that you're holding.

Shannon Grissom (24:11)
And you know that comes down to listening and how often I don't listen to my body enough. And pay attention. Wow. ⁓

Colette Lafia (24:22)
With that listening,

kind of we made a circle. talked about the value of listening. And so just paying attention on every level of listening.

Shannon Grissom (24:34)
What have you learned about yourself? I mean, you probably learned a million things I know I have about the creative process, through the creative process. What has that taught you?

Colette Lafia (24:46)
Well.

One thing I've learned about myself in the creative process is I am a creative person that benefits from ⁓ input, feedback, good teachers, ⁓ good developmental editor. I'm actually not just an artist that works in isolation. So I just learned that about my own temperament. Now again, I think it's really valuable to be with people that you

that get your wavelength that aren't trying to make you into them. But once you find that, like a good writing coach or something, for me, take a class with a teacher that keeps my energy moving or introduces me to something new. So I would say for myself, I do well with the right ⁓ teacher or, ⁓ so I would say that. And also I've learned, ⁓

how to be on my own side. Like, you know, I was very self-judgmental, self-critical, but over the time I've been my best encourager. Like, ⁓ I encourage myself. Like, keep going, you're doing well. Learning to trust myself, but really learning to be there for myself. So I would encourage people in that, you know. ⁓

value your voice, become an encouraging presence for yourself. Know that the Divine Spirit is so enjoying you being creative and is smiling that you are being creative. And learn to love, love this part of yourself and love this relationship.

Shannon Grissom (26:42)
Mmm.

Now I create every day as a form of that's part of an active meditation for me. ⁓ So and I know some people that that only binge create ⁓ and I know you got a yeah. But and and and like you said people need to work with their own temperament. ⁓

Colette Lafia (27:03)
True, no I can't.

Shannon Grissom (27:14)
So do you have a structured creative process, meditative process that you do every day or?

Colette Lafia (27:22)
Well, I do a structured meditative process like I explained earlier ⁓ with the creativity because for most of my life I was working and creating. So I was probably more one of those binge creators. ⁓ Whenever I had some time, I would squeeze it in. But what I find is what's most important is getting excited about something. That creates its own momentum, getting curious about something. ⁓

when my first book was Comfort and Joy, I just got so curious about comfort and I just started seeing it everywhere and sort of so that created its own momentum. So I would say to people, ⁓ follow what makes you curious. Follow what is really interesting to you. Follow what you feel is calling to you. ⁓ It'll come out of that.

Not something you feel you have to do or feel you have to write about but if you listen and to yourself that I think that creates its own rhythm to do that. Now I am trying to be slightly more disciplined but it's because I'm excited about something new I'm working on so that creates that creates a momentum for the discipline and that's just me the way I work.

Shannon Grissom (28:48)
Well, on that excitement, it all comes back to the energy you were talking about. Stoking the fire.

Colette Lafia (28:52)
Yes, really do.

Yeah, exactly. Creativity is energy. And so I think if you just...

Remember that and put yourself in that and know that you are part of that creative energy. Because you are a created being in a creative universe. So you already got that creative DNA already moving through you. And so just join the flow.

Shannon Grissom (29:25)
I love that. At this point, I do whatever I can to protect my creative energy, my creative time. And I know that, let's see, it had to be over 30 years ago, I stopped drinking because at night, I didn't want to be, I would get up super early in the morning before my day job and paint. That's how I made the transition. So I did that for years. ⁓

One night I'm like, I had had a couple glasses of wine the night before and I didn't feel that great the next day and I thought I am safeguarding anything, protecting anything that might affect my energy when I create. And so even the food I eat, I'm switching, know, now I'm working on that. So how does that affect it?

Colette Lafia (30:15)
Yeah.

I think that is so important and what you're talking about is you value that. And so if I value that, then how am I going to take the best care of it? ⁓ How am going to take care of, to nurture and like you said, protect and nourish and encourage this very important part of my life?

Beautiful. That's such a, that's a really valuable teaching.

Shannon Grissom (30:52)
Thank

you. ⁓ Speaking of valuable teaching, you've written several books. Could you just give us a little list and synopsis of each one?

Colette Lafia (31:04)
Yeah,

well my first ⁓ non-fiction book, ⁓ and I just want to say that I never expected to write these kind of books. For my first 10 years of writing, was writing ⁓ picture books, picture book manuscripts. I never got any bites on them. And then ⁓ more spiritual non-fiction books just sort of kind of started coming.

Shannon Grissom (31:07)
the

Colette Lafia (31:33)
and ⁓ I listened to it and I followed it.

So my first book is Comfort and Joy, and it's a beautiful collection of 40 vignettes about finding comfort in everyday life with your pillow, with prayer, with drinking tea. And so they're short meditative pieces ⁓ just written as simple narratives, and then they also add some journaling prompts to them. My second book is called Seeking Surrender, how a Trappist monk taught me to trust and embrace

life and that is a collection of letters that ⁓ I wrote. ⁓ I was in correspondence with the Trappist monk for about seven years while I was going through some really difficult painful ⁓

experiences where I was really being asked to surrender. so these letters form, they've kind of formed the book, but around it, again, written in short vignettes, ⁓ moments of how to surrender in everyday life, how to live a life of surrender. then my third book is called The Divine Heart, ⁓ How to Live in the Fullness of Love, How to Live in God's Love.

seven different principles for how to live in the flow of life with self, others, all of creation and the divine. And again, all my books seem to have very simple narratives along with spiritual practices and journal practices. Because I'm a spiritual director, I always love to give... ⁓

practices to people as a way because I see my writing as a doorway for people into their own reflection into their own hearts into their own longing for love and God and healing and Then my my most recent book is Leaving the Shore It's a collection of poetry So this is my first poetry book. I wrote poetry in college So coming back to writing poetry has been really really healing

and playful and just really really joyful. So and again each of my poems have practices with them. So they have practices that lead people into reflection, into journal writing, into some quiet moments, tender moments. And so ⁓

Yeah, yeah, so those are the four. And you can find out about me on my website. It's ColletteLafia.com. That's one L and two T's. I have many online offerings. I'm doing many online offerings with this book. So if you're interested, you can ⁓ check out my website as well.

Shannon Grissom (34:33)
Wow, well do that and I will put all the links in the show notes. Well thank you, you've just been incredibly inspiring and I'm looking forward to experiencing all of your writing. Each one spoke to me in a different way so that's exciting. Well thank you Colette.

Colette Lafia (34:54)
Thank you so much and thank you for what you're doing. ⁓ Valuing creativity, awakening people to creativity, ⁓ inviting people to keep the door open and keep staying in this very ⁓ essential relationship for our health, our wellness, not just for ourselves, but really for the planet. So I thank you for your good work, Shan.

Shannon Grissom (35:21)
⁓

you're welcome. You're welcome. And thank you all for joining us today. Please be sure to like, subscribe and share so that I can share more inspiring stories with you. We'll see you next time. That's a wrap.

Colette Lafia (35:39)
you