Wednesday 20 July 2011

Sticks and Stones

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Sometimes, when the boys are busy with their work, or when we are sitting around the table for an afternoon of family art, I sit and play with paint, pens and ink and dream up all manner of doodles in my daydreams.

I have begun to cocoon myself with stones, sticks, journals - in fact, anything that I can paint on, and carve a little work niche for myself in this busy home of ours.

It is important, I think, that we as adults allow ourselves the time to create - to keep that spark of creativity alive within us. It is all too easy to give in to chores and 'important' things and to lose ourselves in the process - to erase who we are and confuse it with what we do.

But to create these pockets of calm, these oasise of crafting and creating is no less important than the other work we undertake each day. If fact, it may be more so - for through our example our children soon follow. Once they see me sit in quiet concentration it isn't long before they too sit and concentrate and make. Maybe not for long, but at least they know that this work of ours, whatever it is, that it is important.


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11 comments:

  1. As parents we lead by example. I recently realised that I don't make time to read books, by myself, when the children are around. I do now and I think that it has helped one of the children. As for creativity, I could not bear to pass a single day without making something.

    Your stone drawings are lovely. Are you carving or painting them?

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  2. "Be the change you wish to see in the world" as it were...

    Painting - with acrylic ink. Very therapeutic!

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  3. I love your artwork and the stones too. I went through a phase of writing on stones a while ago, mine were not as pretty as your though.

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  4. These are TRULY lovely..I just followed your flickr stream here, and I am inspired by these tremendously! Thank you for sharing..they are beautiful! and..I agree. To create is to breathe!

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  5. Thankyou for such kind words! Glad to have found you too!

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  6. Oh, I absolutely agree! Your stones are beautiful. I envy those with a gift for drawing.

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  7. Very nice! From a Cumbrian beach by any chance? I have been writing on similar stones with a waterproof white marker pen and using them as plant labels. You have inspired me to make them more decorative.
    BN

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  8. Yes these are all from Allonby :) This ink isnt waterproof so I'll have to varnish them if I want to keep them...

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  9. my gosh, i love this. i am racking my brain, wondering where i can get stones like that. we've just got woodchips at the park. :)

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