Don’t Be a Cookie-Cutter

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hanging out with a group of kiddos ranging from 4 to 12 years old.  We were working on a craft that was not pre-cut or pre-built.  It had no instructions of what to do! All we knew is that we were making a snowman.  It was so much fun to sit and create snowmen that were as unique as the children creating them (I do consider myself a big kid).  Doing this craft with the kids made me think about how often we stifle creativity in our culture.  Instead of allowing kids to use their imagination – to make car or animal noises, turn corn husks into a doll, and our backyards into a jungle adventure – we give them “realistic” dolls that cry, wet, and even eat! They have cars and animals that make the sounds! This leads us to the dreaded “cookie cutter” craft that makes sure everyone creates the same thing. We have a God that is the creator of the universe! We only need to look around and see His creativity, I mean look at the platypus for goodness sake!  Diversity and uniqueness are His calling card! So why do we seem to squash our creativity and our children’s creativity?  Who really cares if we color a horse blue or if everyone’s crafts are identical?  We were created unique and we should all feel free to express our creativity.  So, go ahead, make a mess, color outside the lines with your kids, make heart shaped Christmas cookies, dress your snowman as a race car driver, just do something completely outside the box.  Help break the chains of being a “cookie-cutter” society and free yourself (and your children) to be an original, just we were all created to be! Creatively Yours, Melissa Jurries Elementary Coordinator Want to explore this topic more? This week’s Bible Reading Journal helps us recognize God as we see Him in nature. Check it out as a family!