Growing up as a little boy, one of my favorite bedtime stories was Phoebe Gilman's "Something From Nothing." The story is about a little boy who grows up with a blanket made of patchwork stars. Over the years, the blanket gets torn and broken, but his grandfather continually refurbishes and brings new life to the original blanket. This story embodies the elegance of reusing to reduce consumption, the bond that a child can make with meaningful and well-crafted things, as well as the alchemy of making something useful out of something that previously wasn't.
This story perfectly encapsulates the feeling I have every time I head into the shop. As I'm processing material or shaping a form, I love to think about the people who will bond with and experience the object I'm making. I consider the end-user as well as the specific piece of wood in front of me, finding the best use of that wood in order to have the greatest impact in its future form.
This problem-solving exercise is nothing but play, and I am incredibly grateful to have the resources to play. I hope to bring this joy to as many people as I can before my time has reached the end of my body and mind's usefulness.
Honoring this analogy, it becomes clear that humans interacting with objects and making them better is a game we can play with each other. This game is one that we've been playing collectively for millennia, and it has sharpened us to become who we are today. It's the same game we need to keep playing in order to bring us into the future. Interacting with other human beings brings out the best in each of us. As long as we can remember to consider each of our particular strengths, I remain optimistic about our collective future.
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