Encouraging the creative growth in parents aswell as our children

As important as it is to encourage nature into our gardens, to enrich its flora and fauna: is it to give yourself space to think, to allow an evolving of thoughts to enhance your imagination and creativity.

As a Mum of three under 5 all born within 2 1/2 years of each other I am striving for no noise, no activity, for that 'peace and quiet' that my Mum always asked for at birthdays!

In the wonderful busy-ness of family life I feel myself craving that space for imagination, creative thought, lateral thinking. That behind its closed door of restricted time, lack of calmness and a non-reflective thought environment is a yearning for it to be given a moment of freedom. That today almost came to a point of inner implosion in a longing to gather thoughts and take a little

Not to say that being a Mum does not involve creativity and imagination, it is the time of peace that I feels to be so lacking. As I plan to grow my little garden-office business, or consider a project: domestic, creative or entrepreneurial I need to plan time to think, to be still, prayerful, to delve into the inner-self. 

It wasn't until we have become so busy as parents to you realise the importance and the privilege for finding time for a task labelled with such wishy-washy terms. For now gone have the snippets of time that you might once have taken to day-dream, gather thoughts and allow creative thought a little time to brew. Like driving or walking to places, having a coffee, a bath, cooking etc.

Everyday with my little three I try to encourage activities that will allow imagination to grow and evolve such as avoiding the TV, role play, craft, non-prescriptive toys, manual hand games and toys do I forget that those thought-type activities are as equally important to us as adults for the very same purpose. 

An ideology that pre-children I was and still am deeply passionate about but where have I left out me. As parents we must be and feel the need to be self-less but maybe just being a little selfish for a little creative, reflective peace and quiet we will be better parents, more imaginative parents, more creative parents and not sucked into a soulless busy world without nature in our gardens.

sarahsidders.co.uk