Inspiration… what’s that?

I'm thinking a lot about inspiration today. Where does it come from? Where does it go when you're facing the dreaded artist's block? Is there a way to guarantee you have it every time you sit down at your bench?
Let's start with the definition.

in·spi·ra·tion

\ in(t)-spə- rā-shən, -( )spi-\

noun

1 a : a divine influence or action on a person believed to qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation; b : the action or power of moving the intellect or emotions; c : the act of influencing or suggesting opinions;

2 : the act of drawing in; specifically : the drawing of air into the lungs

3 a : the quality or state of being inspired b : something that is inspired <a scheme that was pure inspiration>
4 : an inspiring agent or influence

Wow... That's a lot. Well let's see. We can cross of the second one. Although we are all breathing* that isn't the one we need.  The third one also doesn't seem to be what we need. And 1a is just a whole can of worms that we can leave to theologists.
So that leaves us with 1b,  c, and 4. To restate:

1. b : the action or power of moving  the intellect or emotions; c : the act of influencing or

suggesting opinions;

4 : an inspiring agent or influence

Those seem pretty good to me. An inspiring agent or influence. One that moves the intellect and emotions, and influence or suggest opinions.
Now we know what the dictionary says.... But it still doesn't really explain where it comes from..... In reality, that question is as complex as trying to figure out motives for why people do things. Some of the most common sources I've seen are art, emotions, people and scenery. For me, I find a lot of inspiration by going for a run. I'll see a particularly interesting arrangement of rocks in the water. Or if I'm up early enough, I'll see the sky turning some really strange shades of red and purple. Sometimes, as y'all have seen on Fridays I'll get inspired by reading or watching something.

This is just me though. For others I'd suggest, look to what you find fun, interesting, or moving. See if there's something that springs to mind from it. Am image? A shape? A pattern?  Another suggestion (and one I know I need to listen to more often) from other artists is this: draw every day. Draw everything. Draw all the things. Even if it looks positively horrible. If you do it every day, you'll get better at it. Honest, you will. (Or so they tell me.)  What this does is give you a basis to improve your skills, so that when you want to draw out the pieces you want to make, you'll actually be able to. You will have developed the skill to accurately depict what you want to make.

Wow this post has gone on longer than I thought it would. O.o We’ll continue on next week and ponder the myriad ways that the evil artists block can steal your lovely inspiration next week. Have a good day! :-)

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*(right? All of you are in fact living, right? I don't have any zombies following me? ;-))