Feeling a bit like I have had too much sleep today. 7 straight hours feels like I'm having a sleep hangover, after almost two weeks of maybe 5 or 6 hours. We'll see how long it takes for the effects of a full night's sleep to wear off. Our sweet babies are 8 full weeks old today, soon they will have their first two shots and be able to go for longer walks outside. They will be able to meet the neighbors and start on their journey to being well socialized, well trained pups. Oh my! What a journey it will be. Thankfully, they are both smart and are already learning so much.
I'm hoping to work on the quilt today. It will all depend on the puppies. And Hubs work schedule. He has a super early conference call every Wednesday morning that he takes from his home office. Which also happens to be where my longarm is. So I am going to work on another UFO upstairs until that is over. I feel it would be quite rude to be sewing while he is trying to hear and speak. I really want it done this week though, so I need to get a bit more organized.
I finished the first UFO yesterday and will hopefully deliver it to my girl today. It's odd how those little accomplishments, can make one feel well... accomplished, successful, on track. As I was finishing up the hat my girl requested I was thinking about it in depth. Remembering when I first learn to knit, ironically to make a sweater vest for her as a little one. I remember how hard I struggled with it, how I felt it would not become a lifelong hobby as I really wasn't doing a very good job. It took me years to figure out how to knit. I had a massive creative block where it was concerned. My brain could not complete the actions.
Put a crochet hook in my hands and I could do anything I decided I wanted to do. But two sticks, goodness what kind of sorcery was that? I refused to give up, I was determined to master it. Over 35 years later, I am not so sure I have mastered it, but it is my preferred needlework. Oh I still crochet, particularly when I want something done quickly. Yet as I was correcting a problem yesterday in the final row of the hat when a needle slid out and I dropped stitches, I remembered frogging (tearing out) many projects because of that very issue.
I was thinking about how much I enjoy creating some things. A lot of family and friends have commented on the gifts I have made over the years. I have sold a few of them as well and done a bit of commissioned work. I am always my worst critic, never feeling that it was good enough, embarrassed at what I had given. Looking back, there were a few beginner pieces that probably deserved those thoughts, but for the most part, I can hold my head up with pride when I finish a piece now. Yet oddly, some of those slightly misshapen early pieces hold the most joy for me.
As I was finishing up I started to think about the time it takes to become skilled. And also the passion it takes to stay true to what you are creating. My younger sister is incredible at making afghans. I love the work she does. They are so pretty and some are complex. I envy her. Can I crochet, absolutely, it was my first craft I mastered. I have made many, many things, and I am more than capable to make afghans, in fact I have made a fair number. I loathe making afghans. If you have one that I made, know it was a pure act of love, because I truly despise making them. And I am not really sure why. The only thing I can figure is that they take such a time commitment to a single stitch or series of stitches and my attention span is far too short for that. The memory of the weeks I spent working on full sized afghans causes me a good amount of anxiety. The memories are not pleasant. My only hope of an afghan is that she will take mercy on me and make me one. Who knows I might commission her to do so.
My other sister has a Cricut, she creates so many wonderful projects. I keep trying to convince her to sell them, to create a business out of it. I hear her echoing my own words for many years. If I do it for a living will I still love doing it? I get it. I truly understand. But dang, she's so talented. I hope I can manage to pull off even a bit of what she has accomplished when I finally get to try mine, maybe a year from now?
I have a both a sister and a friend that are masterful at capturing pictures. They can frame them in such a way that you feel drawn into the moment. You can imagine the scene, smell the smells and hear the sounds captured in that moment. Makes me wonder how many pictures didn't make the cut. How many times did they discard those other photo's to capture that one precious moment?
When we become good at a skill it isn't because we picked it up one day and poof like magic we mastered it. How many times have I unwound a project, picked stitches out of a quilt (like last night - I switched to a new kind of thread and I'm still working on the tension), how many batches of soap are strictly for home use because ugghhh? I have candles that burn perfectly wonderful, but look a fright. The first stuffed toy I made had his head on upside down. It's all about the journey. The time you put into it. The dedication to mastering the craft.
When you are passionate about it, it's magical. When you are simply going through the motions... well... you get the picture.
As I thought about those things and finished the hat, I treasured my own gifts and silently celebrated those around me that don't give up. I'm cheering for everyone that is willing to step out of their comfort zone and learn something knew, to follow their dreams and passions.
Well puppies are awake and wired, Hubs is wandering around with a grumbling belly and the day is ready to start.
love and peace...
Good one! 381+
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