242. Six Months of Rohan
a sneakyart drop from the beach + links to upcoming workshops
Dear reader,
This week, Rohan turned six months. So did we.
Every week he sees a little further, hears a little better, and understands a little more. His wide-eyed, guileless wonder for the world is teaching us how to appreciate all the things we had gotten used to. Being human is a tricky business. Evolutionary requirements dictate that, to process new information, the brain must ignore older things. Over time, it learns to gloss over most of the world, all the familiar stuffs, the same-old same-olds. Parenthood is a chance to refresh these relationships with our environment.
Rohan is sleeping through the night now. So are we. For his six-month-iversary, we took him to the beach early in the morning, where he met a pigeon but did not notice a heron flying overhead. I pointed out the colours of container boxes on the cargo ships at the distant horizon, and he chortled with delight. Rohan loves to be shown colours. But I half-suspect he just likes making me point at things. Because sometimes I lie about the colour and he doesn’t even notice. Just smiles widely, laughs, and giggles. I laugh too. Who’s playing whom?
In today’s post, scenes from the beach, and a look back at six months of parenting. Scroll to the bottom of this post for links to the next workshop and this month’s reader hangout.
The SneakyArt Post is a publication of secretly drawn art of the world. Every week, I share the latest pages from my sketchbooks and the best ideas from my journey as an artist, writer, and parent.
Parenthood is a transformative experience. A transformative experience will upend your life - your priorities, goals, likes and even your dislikes. It will literally transform you into a different person. How do you decide whether you want to become a parent, when the very idea of you will be changed?
Parents, how did you come to this decision?
It occurs to me that the near-universal terms for mother - “Ma”, “Mama”, “Mummy”, “Mumma” etc. - may have something to do with babies finding it easy to pronounce the ma sound with their tongues. Attempts to get him to say ‘Papa’ before all else have been unsuccessful.
Dads, suggest covert strategies please?
During his Great Sleep Regression Phase, Rohan would refuse to sleep away from us. Then, every morning, he would wake us up with song.
Watching Rohan sleep, and drawing him while he sleeps, is a unique joy of my life these days. A sketchbook is the excuse, really. An excuse to observe him deeply, and not just as a parent looking at their child.
The first time we took Rohan out to touch grass, he was not best pleased to be taken out of his comfortable seat. But I must make allowances for that because he is not quite in this world yet. What is grass, he might ask. A reasonable question if only he had the words to express himself.
How do children build their model of the world? How does understanding grow?
I remember being surprised by the Moro Reflex. Every few minutes, while he slept, Rohan would throw his arms up in the air. The Moro Reflex is supposedly an evolutionary remnant from our time as primates living on trees. I would watch him sleep to anticipate when this might happen, so I could place my hand quickly within reach, so he would have a branch to hold onto.
Watching him sleep I would also wonder about his dreams. Before one knows things, and people, and stories, what is the stuff of dreaming?
🎉 Drop a comment to wish Rohan a happy half-birthday!
🖼️ Vancouver residents, I will be at Lonsdale Quay Market this Friday and Saturday selling prints and drawing all day (11am - 6pm). Come say hello!
💻 On Saturday 17 August, join the SneakyArt Reader’s Hangout for a lesson on perspective and a quick tour of my sketchbooks. This session is FREE to all readers!
💻 On Sunday 18 August, join my next workshop - How to Defeat the Blank Page - to learn how I break down complex urban scenes and start drawing quickly. Use code [SNEAKYREADER] for your reader-discount.
Thank you for reading. I am glad to have a share of your time and attention this week.
Totally agree that parenthood is transformative! But there’s no way anyone can possibly understand just how much the parent human will transform until you are actually into the process.
It’s like I can read about swimming, and be knowledgeable about the strokes, etc. However, I won’t really know about swimming until I’m actually in the water. And I won’t really transform until I have a great deal of practical experience with swimming, in all types of water and conditions.
I think if we really, really understood what changes we would be going through when we become a parent, we’d be terrified! More terrified than what we already were! Perhaps too terrified to actually decide to do it! What will birth be like? How will I keep this little creature safe and happy? Am I doing this or that “right”? What if I’m doing it “wrong”? Can I do more and more? Or how much is enough?
My son is 37, my daughter is 39 years old. I am still transforming through my relationships with them. And my son’s 2 year old daughter has reoriented me to the process of transformation. We are both forever changed, and life could hardly be better.
Happy half-year anniversary, Rohan!
I can’t believe it’s been six months already 🥳 happy 6 months birthday Rohan 🎂😘