on creativity

I am not a particularly creative person. It's just not really in my nature. And because of this I've never had a real desire to push the envelope and see how far my meager skills could take me. And yet, for my class this term (History of Creativity) they are requiring me to do just that- push the envelope. I have project that is worth 30% of my grade (!) due on Wednesday. We have to incorporate some aspect of what we've discussed this term and do so kind of creative project. Are you thinking that sounds vague? Me too. Therefore I have been left to wander aimlessly to try to dig into the depths of my creativity pool and find something to pull out and use. Being an English major- I decided to try my hand at poetry. I thought I would write a few different poems reflecting different styles of poets through time, while incorporating some modernity or some element from another poet. I thought of Wordsworth, Shakespeare and Whitman as my models. I think I kind of got the Wordsworth down- nature, beauty, romantic. Check. And now I am stuck on Shakespeare. Can I just say that man was a genius? Have you ever tried to write a sonnet? Oh my goodness- so hard. I don't even know where to begin! Between the rhyme scheme, iambic pentameter and the amount of syllables per line- I am back to wandering around in a haze of confusion. Whitman should be much easier- free verse and writing through observation about the average American. My next step is to take one picture representing each stanza of the poem I've written. I have this beautiful, romantic image in my head of how everything will all turn out- and I think I need to accept the fact that it will be nothing like what I envision. I'm an amateur photographer, and an even greater amateur (oxymoron?) poet. This is my first true attempt at poetry in my life. So wish me luck as I venture out on a limb and attempt my hand at the first truly creative feat (ie- something totally outside my comfort zone with the purpose of being intellectually and aesthetically pleasing).