LIFE IS A CANVAS

Almost every day I think of and/or daydream about painting, writing, or creating art in some form or fashion. Daily, however, I get bogged down by the mundane. Throughout the day, I'll feel a lull approaching just as I'm about to finish the dishes or get the folded laundry "put away" (on top of the already-overflowing pile on my armchair...don't judge!). And, just as I'm about to reach out to grab hold of those opportunities, as one would reach for a post at the edge of a dock to tie off and jump safely onto land, I remember the next thing on my list that must be done. Doctor appointments, forms to fill out, bills to pay... the list (as you know) just goes on.

The "art-portunities," as I'll call them, seem so within my reach, but then for whatever reason, the boat of life shifts, and I usually end up losing my balance (i.e. tiring out from working) and just deciding to take a nap instead. Then, I wake up and have to take the boat out again onto the sometimes choppy waters of motherhood.

What I've come to realize this past week, however, is that over and above my desires to use my God-given abilities of painting, crafting, or writing, I'm called by my Heavenly Father to be a mother to my children. Sadly, sometimes I perceive all that it takes to raise them as a hindrance to my art, a "waste" of my gifts, as if the two were mutually exclusive. (Note: If I were my own mother, I'd give myself a long lecture about my pitiful attitude.) And, while I enjoy intertwining a pinterest-worthy craft or two into my mothering (e.g. a cookie-cutter-shaped sandwich or a tennis ball birthday cake), the satisfaction is short-lived, and the appreciation hit or miss.

But, GOD reminded me this week... LIFE itself is a canvas. My children's lives are canvases. My words and love, the paint; my tongue, my arms, the brushes. Dare I admit it... the clean clothes and dishes, the paint; my attitude of serving, the largest of the brushes. Lastly for myself, my car, the paint; my presence in that car picking them up after school, just being there... another brush. For moms who work outside of the home, this will look a little different, but whatever buckets of paint you have, such as your income to help pay for their school... the paint; your sacrifice of going to work each day, the brush.

In sum, those "art-portunities" I keep grasping for... they're there. They're just in different colors, different buckets, different brushes than I expected. Life's messy just like the picture at the top. Nothing's perfect, and life's not a one-brush-fits-all. If there is any encouragement for you this week, fellow Mom, hear this... life is a canvas. Paint it to the best of your abilities because you've been given paint, you've been given brushes, and we're all gifted by our Heavenly Father with special abilities that nobody else on this planet can duplicate, especially when it comes to our most amazing works of art... our very own children.