My husband is out of town for a few weeks. Fortunately I have in-town grandparents who are helping me tons. Without them I could not navigate school plays, parent-teacher conferences, classroom help, and getting to the gym every now and then. I'm very thankful!
Since this blog is sort of an extension of my life, by which I mean that I don't plan ahead, and I don't particularly make goals for it, I just write what I'm inspired to write, blogging may be a bit sporadic in my husband's absence. Or maybe I'll need this outlet, we'll just have to see. Anyway, today I have a few thoughts.
Every time my husband goes on a trip, I gain new respect for single parents. It is hard to not have someone to fall back on when you're tired, or to stay with the kids while you run out for milk, or to help you drive kids to and fro. You have to do a lot more planning ahead, and you can't afford to not be on top of your schedule. And to do all the housework and childcare and care for the emotional needs of your kids without the support of a loving spouse . . . I just can't imagine. The pressures, the fears, the loneliness must be staggering.
So to all of you single parents, or to those of you who sometimes feel like a single parent due to work schedule or your spouse's emotional/psychological struggles or long-term disability, I dedicate these verses. God cares for you in a special way.
"Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. . . . Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation." Ps 68: 5, 19
May the Lord bear you up today!
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Art Class
My oldest child is in sixth grade, and in our town that means that she cycles through four "art" classes, one per quarter. The four courses are drama, art, music, and computer skills (which I have a hard time calling art, but I suppose you use it in various artistic endeavors). This quarter she's in art, and as I thought about her being in an art class for 45 or 50 minutes every day, I got a little jealous. I think at her age I would've felt intimidated by the prospect of a daily art class, since I'm not good at many of the activities you do in art class. But now, at 30-something, I'm jealous.
To have a span of time each day when your only job is to express yourself sounds heavenly. To be told to pick up fun art supplies and use them to create whatever your soul is telling you to sounds so peaceful and liberating. Maybe I just like the thought of having control over something. I can't control my screaming toddler or my obstinate 4-year-old or my sometimes challenging pre-teen, but I can control the colors and materials I use to create a picture. And while the outcome of my artwork may not be any more predictable than the outcome of my parenting (remember how I said I'm not so good at art?), at least I know it won't talk back to me or sometimes make my heart ache.
As I was contemplating the gift my daughter has in this daily art class, it hit me: I can schedule my days more or less how I want, and if I truly believe that each person is made in the image of a creative God, then my lifestyle should include artistic expression. Call it art therapy, call it worship, call itself-expression. Call it what you will, I think creativity is part of our makeup, not just a recreational pursuit. I think it's how we're supposed to live each day we have on earth, not something that should be pushed to the margins and engaged in if we have extra time. (And how many of us have much "extra" time?)
The creative expression I'm talking about could be something like cooking, or sketching a picture, or expressing myself in music. It could be coloring with my baby or writing in a journal. It could be experimenting with my camera or rearranging the furniture in the living room. It may or may not have some specific outcome, and it may not be "successful" in terms of turning out like I want it to. Perhaps the only rule for creative expression is that it is something that doesn't need to be done, that doesn't meet a purely utilitarian need (although of course it may be useful).
And so as an act of gratitude for the way God made me and the place he's put me, I'm going to give myself the gift of daily creative self-expression. I'm giving myself an art class. I'm going to have creativity be one of my daily goals, not the thing that always gets pushed aside. Or to be more specific, I'm going to set aside 45 minutes of every day for the next month to be spent in a creative endeavor of my own choosing.
Now, this is not going to be an easy month in which to set aside 45 minutes each day. I'm going to be a single parent for two weeks. And Thanksgiving also falls in this month. And the beginning of the Christmas rush. But perhaps with these added stresses this is the best possible month for this new goal of mine. What better way to help myself tackle a challenging month than to give myself the gift of time and space and peace that creativity offers? And what better gift can I give my children when I'm juggling a full schedule than a peaceful mom who encourages them to express themselves creatively also?
Is anyone ready to join me in this daily "art class" challenge? I'll keep you posted on my progress if you keep me posted on yours!
To have a span of time each day when your only job is to express yourself sounds heavenly. To be told to pick up fun art supplies and use them to create whatever your soul is telling you to sounds so peaceful and liberating. Maybe I just like the thought of having control over something. I can't control my screaming toddler or my obstinate 4-year-old or my sometimes challenging pre-teen, but I can control the colors and materials I use to create a picture. And while the outcome of my artwork may not be any more predictable than the outcome of my parenting (remember how I said I'm not so good at art?), at least I know it won't talk back to me or sometimes make my heart ache.
As I was contemplating the gift my daughter has in this daily art class, it hit me: I can schedule my days more or less how I want, and if I truly believe that each person is made in the image of a creative God, then my lifestyle should include artistic expression. Call it art therapy, call it worship, call itself-expression. Call it what you will, I think creativity is part of our makeup, not just a recreational pursuit. I think it's how we're supposed to live each day we have on earth, not something that should be pushed to the margins and engaged in if we have extra time. (And how many of us have much "extra" time?)
The creative expression I'm talking about could be something like cooking, or sketching a picture, or expressing myself in music. It could be coloring with my baby or writing in a journal. It could be experimenting with my camera or rearranging the furniture in the living room. It may or may not have some specific outcome, and it may not be "successful" in terms of turning out like I want it to. Perhaps the only rule for creative expression is that it is something that doesn't need to be done, that doesn't meet a purely utilitarian need (although of course it may be useful).
And so as an act of gratitude for the way God made me and the place he's put me, I'm going to give myself the gift of daily creative self-expression. I'm giving myself an art class. I'm going to have creativity be one of my daily goals, not the thing that always gets pushed aside. Or to be more specific, I'm going to set aside 45 minutes of every day for the next month to be spent in a creative endeavor of my own choosing.
Now, this is not going to be an easy month in which to set aside 45 minutes each day. I'm going to be a single parent for two weeks. And Thanksgiving also falls in this month. And the beginning of the Christmas rush. But perhaps with these added stresses this is the best possible month for this new goal of mine. What better way to help myself tackle a challenging month than to give myself the gift of time and space and peace that creativity offers? And what better gift can I give my children when I'm juggling a full schedule than a peaceful mom who encourages them to express themselves creatively also?
Is anyone ready to join me in this daily "art class" challenge? I'll keep you posted on my progress if you keep me posted on yours!
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