Paint a Picture of Your Child

Note: This is a guest-post by Melodie Moore (of LotsofLove.com — Currently under renovations.)

Our families are awesome. They show us ways of living. They show us all the amazing possibilities they’ve found in their lives. They teach us many amazing things. Our parents deserve a lot of credit for contributing to making us who we are. Every parent looks at us like they would a sunny day or a beautiful painting. They want only the very best for us at all times. They want us to have all the things they didn’t. They want us to be better than them, to do more.

Can raising kids be compared to making art? I’m going to assume you’re nodding your head at this point. I would even go on to say that children become a parent life’s masterpiece. They spend years and years giving us all of their best gifts so that we may excel in the world. If you ask an artist "How do you make such beautiful paintings?" The artist will reply that it’s inspired, that it comes from somewhere else, from god, or from some intense experience that only life could arrange. They’d say that they don’t think a whole lot while creating and are mostly just focused on the process itself. While creating their art, I don’t see them thinking "Well I should do put some red here so this piece will be a marketable success, some purple here so it will manipulate others opinions, and then some yellow here so my art will attract lots of the opposite sex." Truly talented artists may easily accomplish all these things, but I just don’t see them doing it through these kinds of thoughts.

By comparing making a painting, to raising kids parents can open themselves up to the possibility that they create phenomenal things without having to worry too much about the outcome. Then they can have faith that their child’s worth will be seen by the world. They can let go and enjoy the process of painting (parenting!) enjoy the process of seeing their child blossom into whatever success he or she feels inspired to. A parent’s painting may not turn out the way they originally thought. It could also turn out 10 times better than that. They could also stand there with a paintbrush in hand for years, worrying about how the painting will turn out.

Your parents may have super-great intentions for you, and just like painting a picture, they may go through stages where they feel super-attached to how the painting turns out. This may show as stuff like "You gotta go to school, get a career, and be successful." — This all comes about because they are often very attached to exactly what you’re doing and exactly how it turns out. There comes a time when they can relax and let go, and then they can simply support you, saying "Oh honey, I love and support whatever you’re doing." It’s such an amazing feeling to have your parents support what you’re doing, and it’s hard to put your foot down and step away from that support (or lack of it), when you know deep down that stepping away from their support, because you’re inspired to go hitchhike across Canada, that may result in a famous story or book deal, and you go right ahead and do it. Your parents will surely fall into line as time goes on, but only if you’re ready to take the first step and do it.

I love my life. Everyday I wake up and it feels more true. You're far more interesting than I am. I know what's in my consciousness. What's in yours? I strive to inspire, enliven and enchant those around me. I love being outside, inside, upside down, downtown, uptown, by the lake, in the lake - always doing what I love, where I love to be. http://melodieofmovement.com

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