When kids are small, they are output devices. They create spontaneously, and they want to share. They make sound effects. They tell stories.
But all too often, something happens.
Maybe a comment is made and a child gets the idea that she is not "good" at art.
Or, maybe early teen self-consciousness sets in and creating things feels like risking ridicule.
When these things happen, often the pencil gets put down. Or the trombone, or the paints, or the camera. The Creative Beast crawls under the bed, and maybe isn't seen again for a long, long time.
Has this happened to you? How old were you? Was there a specific moment that you remember when things changed? How did it feel?
I am fascinated by this experience, and how it affects our relationship to our Creative Beast early in our life. I'd love to hear your stories.
