Family Art Lessons — Some Thoughts about Why

Because the summer I learned to make books I could not imagine anything else.
Because, as Paulus Berensohn says, when you open the cover of your journal, you are in soul’s kitchen.
Because envisioning is a powerful tool, and journal practice is a visioning tool.
Because what if the very act of envisioning the world we wish to live in– the one we will leave to future generations—is the first step to making that world come true?
Because first and second grade kids last January and February responded to these lessons with energy and joy and reminded me what important work playing can be.
Because I believe there is difficult and important work that needs to be happening around the long buried issues of race and injustice. Sometimes we can do our best work when we are playing.
Because art can an effective tool for telling our stories.
Because art heals.
Because a journal is a safe place to explore painful thoughts, frightening realities. Work stuff out. What gnaws at you in the middle of the night? Draw it. Imagine it as a sculpture.
If racism is a monster, what does it look like?