It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints the most beautiful pictures.”
–St. Andre Besette
Earlier after my little boy woke up prematurely from his nap, he did not let me out of his sight. This seldom happens so I was a bit frustrated as I had plans I was in the process of accomplishing during his nap. As soon as I stepped away or would just have Jonathan take him, he would cry. Even if I sat him down on my chair, and I was attempting to work only six inches away from him, he would still cry because that was still too far for his comfort. Finally I sat him on my lap and he was content.
Then of course, as expected, he reached for my small brushes and wanted to paint, just like his mommy. Noticing his curiosity to paint, I switched the actual piece I was working on with a blank one, and he took the brush with his hand, dipped it in to the paint, and made little strokes on the blank piece of paper. He was so happy. It in turn brought great joy to me as I wasn’t anticipating that. Even in such a short amount of time of watching me paint, he knew what to do and proceeded to do so.
It is beautiful to see how God reveals Himself in these moments. I feel as though God was telling me to not push him aside at that moment when I easily could have, but to let him be a part of it, to show him what it was that I was doing. Since becoming a parent, one of things I’ve gotten better at (as a Type A personality) is simply being at peace with when I’m no longer in control of my schedule. This is especially helpful for me to remember as I try to find an appropriate balance between my full time job and this passion of mine, all while being a wife and mom of two littles throughout all of it.
I don’t know where this road will lead or how everything will fall into place, but just like the Master Artist, He knows the big picture, He creates the masterpiece. He just asks me to remain faithful to painting the small strokes — for the whole of life and in the little moments like the ones I had with my son.
