Parenting is like painting

Being a parent over the last year has had an immense influence on my artistic practice and vice versa. It has helped me realize my priorities and organize my needs as well as those of the family. I have learned a lot from my children about the importance of routine, about how to respond creatively to what they need developmentally at each stage and trying to give myself space for what I need. This has also opened up avenues of creative research which are intimately connected to childhood, such as attention, play and the flow of making. Parenting is like art in that both are always changing, moving forward, and children are constantly challenging you to stay in front of the situation, to see the bigger picture but also the minute detail, to see them for who they are at that very moment. Art is like parenting in that it is sometimes a mess, but through chaos arrives order, and having the discipline of practice, routine, useful tools and an explorative outlook you can stay open to the possibilities of change and development. Not every day is perfect, most aren't actually, but I guess it's the creative way we respond which matters. How can you intuitively move through a painting? How can you move through the day giving people what they need and trying as best you can to avoid tantrums or upset?