The other day I had a typical proud MOM moment. Like the many before this one, I stared at my daughter and thought YEP, she’s a genius! Luckily for me, I usually get brought back down to reality quick enough that I don’t start calling news agencies and boasting that I have the next Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds in the making. Yes, my daughter is smart, beautiful and creative but she’s probably not a super genius wiz kid. PROBABLY.
But on this morning I was “Momming” around the house… you know cleaning, picking up and organizing… when I picked up her coloring book to put away. Flipping back to the front, I noticed she had already gone ham on this new book as the pages were starting to fill quickly. I immediately noticed a castle outline with coloring already in the works… and it was, for a 2 year old girl, AMAZING. I was stunned at how inside the lines she was and how she had even started a pattern for the colors. So impressed in fact, that I asked Abasi if it was his work, which thankfully it was not since he’s 36 and I know he’s got a better coloring game than that! I couldn’t believe it… how could a little girl color so well, so neat and so organized?
I mean, she’s 2… wow, right?
And almost before I got through the thought in my head, I felt a sudden urge of panic.
Not an uncontrollable, debilitative panic but a small sensation running up my spine telling me to pay attention to something. I knew immediately what it was. The drawing was too neat and clean, too put together for a little girl. I wanted her to go crazy, be messy, have fun with it, not worry about staying inside the lines too much.
And trust me, I would never say this to her… this stays between us. I will encourage and applaud her drawings, neat or messy. But I want to make sure she is embracing all the beauty that comes with being a little crazy, a little messy and a little imperfect. This wasn’t a ground breaking, life shattering turn of events for Kennedy, she will never be the wiser, but now as her Mama, I have a secret mission: to help her embrace the messy and beautiful parts of life.
It’s along the same lines of cheering and clapping when a baby falls down. They look immediately to your face to determine if this is something they should cry about, be hurt because of. If you make a happy-big deal about it, they get excited again and keep on moving. I want to be like that for every little messy part of Kennedy’s life. Her biggest cheerleader (ugh, yes I said it) for big or small events that go either as planned or not according to plan. I want her to know that not being perfect IS PERFECT. She doesn’t have to get straight A’s, never have braces, win every game or keep every hair in it’s place, as long as she is giving it her all. She can fall down, get up, go out on a limb, cry, wipe her eyes, take chances, fail and then succeed again because THAT is what it is all about in this crazy/ beautiful life.
Some people will get this, others will not. That’s ok. For me, I look at that picture and see how well done it was and know she is already on her way to being amazing. She’s got it in her and I can’t wait to watch her grow and succeed like I know she will. But I also know from my own experiences, that it’s not always about drawing inside the lines. Doing something crazy, taking chances and making mistakes is how we learn and grow. Some days we will be a perfectly colored castle and other days we will be a Jackson Pollock piece of art… and that is beautiful.
Do You Have a Jungle Princess? 