Hearts & Hands Classroom
welcome to DAY 1.
Welcome, friends.
Thank you for joining me to
make art, to create from the heart, to appreciate the little blessings of everyday life.
Today, be inspired.
Enjoy the introductory videos.
Take your time.
This is entirely self-paced.
Friday, you can expect the following videos to be added to get you started with creating:
* All About Art Supplies
* Additional Project Ideas inspired by Picasso's Bouquet of Peace
*Fingerprint clay project videos
In my journaling time, these are the words that came to me, and perhaps,
Jesus just might whisper something like this—
for our hearts
and for our hands . . .
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
Through the rough and rocky stretches.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
When your heart is racing from fear and uncertainty.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
When you are weary, when you are in pain, when you are unable to fix things.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
When your loved ones leave
knowing when they reach out to take My hand, I will be there.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
When you step out into the unknown.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
when you are called to leave the safety of your shelter.
Let Me take your hand and hold you steady
When you cannot see.
Let Me take your hand.
I will hold you steady.
Hand tracing
warm up activity
Friends, creating with kids is always unpredictable and our family is no exception. I hope you take heart in watching these videos of our imperfect, silly, stepping on each other moments of making something that will grow in value with time.
Sometimes we can look back and laugh at those "remember when..." moments and see who we were
and what we were trying to accomplish
and see that we made efforts and find the value in them, even in the messiness, even in the rough edges scraping against one another.
bouquet of peace
Picasso Inspired Projects
Children are intrigued by the work of Pablo Picasso and often give a vocal response.
Sometimes negative. Sometimes positive.
Often curious.
His work grabs the eyes and seems to demand attention. One thing about it, if a person looks at a work by Picasso, a person is apt to have a strong opinion.
What Picasso seems to teach me, is to think differently. Look at things from a different perspective, not always the same. Sometimes, to be effective, you must make a change. That change might look dramatically different and be a shock to the system. However, sometimes that shift is vital.
What Picasso also reminds me to do is let go of controlling the outcome and trust that there is value in the process and some things increase in value over time.
In this particular activity, if I insist on controlling the outcome of these projects, especially those with my kids, I can expect frustration. However, when I embrace the messiness of sibling relationships, of varying expressions of identity at their age and stage on this particular day, at this particular moment, you will smile to yourself, you might roll your eyes, you might have to raise your voice a time or two, and you might laugh—you might see who they are at this moment unfold before you and make a mark of identity to remember a this point in time. You just might capture something hilariously sacred in the wholly, as in completely, and the holy, as in sacred, common everyday moment.
Let it be messy. Let it be a bit of a struggle. Let it look different that the way you want or expect it to look.
Keep your hands and heart open rather than maintaining a tight grip on the process. There is a time for all things. There are times to hang on for dear life, and there are times to loosen the grip and receive what comes.
Having Rhett unexpectedly at age 45 taught me to let go of what I thought my life would look like and to embrace and face what it is. To open my hands to life.
Open hands are a symbol to me of surrendering to the grace of God who directs my steps knowing that life changes.
Check back Saturday afternoon to see more Bouquet of Peace inspired projects from these warm-ups. Also expect a video about art supplies and at the end of class, I will show how I finish up each of these pieces for display.
