Have you ever watched a toddler or preschooler with art supplies? It can be adorable or spellbinding or a bit treacherous, depending on the situation. I’ve recently had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with all three of my granddaughters, aged 18 months to 4 years, and I’m struck by how early in our lives we are able to create beauty and express ourselves. And how early self-judgement sets in. 

The other day, I sat with 2 year old Naomi as she jabbed a piece of drawing paper with a washable marker as if I was an ice pick. She created some lines and some swirls, but mostly, she jabbed and was perfectly delighted with the process and the outcome. We moved on to stickers and she was enraptured. When that lost its appeal, we brought out the kinetic sand and she shaped some hoodoos and mounds. No self judgement, no gold stars, no measure at all of whether her efforts were worthwhile. Just delight. 

On the other hand, my 4 year old grand girl, Ruby, can be pretty tough on herself. When an image doesn’t look like she wants it to look, she can get mighty fierce and frustrated as she rips the offending piece of paper to shreds. Her Dad, my son Sam, was just like that, actually. And I told Ruby what I always told him: “It can take time to make the image on paper look like the idea in our head. Can you try to enjoy the process and let go of the product?” She wasn’t so sure. When I was with her recently in Copenhagen, I wished I had brought along a copy of the book, Harold and the Purple Crayon. Purple is one of her favorite colors and I think Harold might have inspired her to feel good about drawing outside the lines. 

That lesson is a bit sophisticated for a 4 year old, but not necessarily for us. We can create beauty and express ourselves in a myriad of ways and we can try to stay grounded in that process of expression. And beauty doesn’t just reside in 2 dimensions on paper. We can create beauty through kindness, through stewardship of Nature, through our commitment to community, and by striving to be our best perfectly imperfect selves from day to day.

So take your literal or figurative purple crayon and create some beauty in your world…we can never have enough. 

In faith, 
Rev. Robin