Art Form

Raising children is challenging. There would still be no easy route even if there were a definitive book of rules and guidelines. Many people have written advice books about child-rearing. It’s up to us as readers to accept or reject that advice.

Let’s say that as a process, child raising is an art form. Does art follow particular processes? Well, yes and no. A musician follows a process when practising. They decide which section of a piece to practice. The art comes in the performance of the piece.

An artist follows a process. The art is the finished work.

However, a child isn’t a musical composition or a piece of art. And, I’d argue, a child is never finished, unlike a piece of art. Yes, a child becomes an adult. Childhood is done, but the process isn’t.

The art continues. We continue to grow; we continue to learn. As parents, we undertake a process that is the sum of many parts–nurturer, teacher, carer, psychologist, trainer, counsellor, referee, advisor, nurse, fast-talker, slow-talker, deal-maker, deal-breaker, shoulder to cry on, and shoulder to lean on.

I’m sure there are others. Each one involves a particular process. And that’s before we navigate the immense art form that is love.