Joy in Ink

Finding Joy in Play

Day 5 – Made to Matter: 13 Soulful Stories from the Studio

This one began with no plan—just color, curiosity, and a need for something light.

I had been looking for a project to share with the middle school kids at church. Something easy. Something joyful. Something they could take home and say, “I made this.” And so the night before, I pulled out the alcohol inks with my mom and my daughter-in-love, Brittany. What followed was a night of laughter, splashes of color, stained fingertips, and wide-eyed wonder.

We played without purpose.
We let the inks roam.
We watched as magic happened without instruction.

The next day—my birthday—we taught the class. Each child made a print, and we turned them into small framed artworks and journal covers. They left holding something they made, and I left holding something too—a deep sense of joy. A reminder that sometimes the most meaningful gifts come from moments that are simple, spontaneous, and shared.

It didn’t matter that it was my birthday. What mattered was that we created something together. Something that didn’t need fixing or finishing. Something that only asked us to show up and enjoy the moment.

That, to me, is art at its most alive.

“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.”
—Proverbs 17:22

“The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct.” —Carl Jung

A Thought to Carry

When was the last time you created just for fun—with no plan, no pressure, and no outcome in mind? What would happen if you let yourself play again?