One of the many things I’m grateful for is the way my young son unknowingly shows me the value of iterating using a limited set of materials and parameters. Does it always lead to something innovative? Not always but it often enough does.
He’s inspired me with a brilliantly simple but challenging idea he had: to draw a unique napkin for his lunch each day. We started by using a few colored markers and our imaginations.
Silly? Maybe but this silly exercise has translated into serious value in other parts of my life, opening my heart and mind to new and more diverse approaches to solutions both personally and professionally. Not to mention, his ideas have given my drawing practice a boost and it’s impossible to not be inspired by the power of a young mind’s natural gifts for collaboration.
When he kept asking, I thought we’d run out of ideas pretty quick. Here we are, more than 4 years later, and our idea machine (only I call it that) has become a prolific part of our lives that gives us great joy.
I don’t always remember to take pictures of them but here are some favorites (out of literally hundreds by now):










And, I’m especially in love with the moments when he challenges me to draw things that are way outside my comfort zone with ideas from the imaginations of great artists who’ve inspired us all:

“Daddy, how about you draw Hobbes?”




This is a long-winded way to reiterate it’s the unexpected things (and my son, of course) that inspire me the most. Best part? He’s begun to draw along (heart melts).
