FOUND: 2015 Week 1

"Maybe, the one had to be lost for the others to be found."

Donna Tartt

The Goldfinch

Artists Make things.

They leave a mark.  Not just A mark, their mark.

Every single time, they are creating something that has NEVER been done before.

The thing with art is this...
It wants to be shared.
It's very existence requires it to be shared.
Sometimes, on purpose...
Sometimes, quite accidentally.

As you can see, I work with Artists everyday.  

What's different about my young artists is they bring their "critic" along with them each time.

There's a strange dynamic between the Artist and the Non-Artist.

The Artist wants your feedback but is also extremely sensitive to your feedback.

It almost feels like a NO-Win system.

As, I play guitar and ukulele around the house, I find myself on occasion asking my husband, "How did that sound?"

I realize that I rarely pay much attention to his reply.

I think what most artists crave is a sort of recognition.

Do you see me?

Do see (or hear;) what I am creating?

Am I shining through this art?

So, how can you react to your child's Arts?

Whether it be...
A painting
A Building
A Sculpture
A Song
A Joke

Look (or Listen) with all your Soul.

You really don't need to say much or have a ridiculous Overblown reaction.

Just See your child's soul coming through.

To Set your Soul out there for the world to see...takes great courage and the artist is most critical of him/herself.

Because the Artist Wants and Needs to Grow.

That is why he or she is drawn to the Arts to begin with.

And anything that wants to grow... needs some watering.

But... your goal in Praise for your child should be in Guidance... in how they can transform your acknowledgements into his/her own inner voice.

Thich Nhat Hanh wrote a Beautiful Book, Planting Seeds, Practicing Mindfulness with Children.

"The Lotus can bloom only the mud."

"Your compassion, your love, can be nourished by the negative elements within your unconsciousness.  

If you have never been hungry, how can you experience the  joy of having something to eat?"

As with Life, the Arts can cause a great suffering...
As your children get older and struggle with drawing, painting, etc...

You will begin to see the value in Looking at your child.
And seeing who he or she is through his/her Arts.
It's Not usually a Neat process...It's very messy...

But, growing in the mud, makes us all the stronger.

For myself and my children, The arts are a way to express oneself.

It's not necessarily to please someone else because... Frankly, even if you act like you like it, it doesn't make me Like what I've done any more or less.

Expressing oneself is quite important.
It's how we discover who we even are.
People do this in so many different ways.

But, I will warn you...You can't express your soul by watching TV...You can't reach out to the world by sitting in front of a screen.

You gotta make something....

Even, if you erase it or throw it in the garbage...it leaves a Print in your heart...Your soul took a step in that mud and started to grow a little.

And, of course, if your children see you Making something...it will inspire them to do the same!!!

Remember...A good life is a bit of a mess...!!