Month: February 2018

Potter :: Mama

I’ve scrounged up the time -in the business of motherhood and life itself- to throw on my wheel, which is located in a corner of my parents’ basement. They live in the suburbs of this area just six minutes from my place out in the country. Eventually, we have plans of building here on our property a studio for me, one large enough for my work but also for the kids to hang out in. Until then…. I intermittently have opportunities to work in my makeshift studio that butts up to my dad’s office (what he always dreamed of- having his married daughter come back home to work in his office space 😉 ) I’ve been thinking to myself about my work as a potter and my work a mother. I love both jobs. I have a passion for them both. I have a passion for a lot of other things as well such as public speaking, Vision Therapy, brain development, and watercolor painting. But for now, at this stage of my life, I’ve picked …

Kids: Don’t Keep

I’m the sort of mom, whether it’s positive or negative, who likes to get things done- finish that pile of laundry, clean up the bathroom, do my Bible study, take the trash out, go for a walk outside- keep on truckin! But that just wasn’t happening this morning. I tried getting to my list, but my toddler kept getting in the way. “Want to wash hands, Mama!” “I need a snack, Mama!” “I want to wash Silky, Mama!” “Help, Mama!” Inside this was me: 🙄😑😖😤☹️😩 That list just wasn’t happening and being a Homemaker was right out the window with the window-washing (that I haven’t done…. like, ever). I stopped in my tracks and asked myself, “What have the voices of wisdom told me about parenting?” I heard from my mind’s memory box my former pastor’s wife tell me that when she finally had children after years of waiting that she was ready to have her life turned upside down and that she enjoyed every minute of raising three boys; I heard my longtime family …

Potter :: God

At this juncture in my potential career with clay, I’m simply learning how to “feel” the clay. I’m learning how it moves and shifts and forms and swells and lengthens and expands. The process of being a potter is largely through touch, the feeling of clay in my hands. It’s a tough job. It looks way easier than it actually is! This little soap dish here- it’s nothing special. But making it was something special- the clay itself was hard and cracked and uncentered from the start (the preparation part before throwing on the wheel is important, too, but I haven’t quite mastered that either). The clay flew off the bat three different times. I felt frustrated that I couldn’t center it, that I couldn’t get it firm enough on the bat to make it into a worthwhile vessel. And that made me stop and ponder…. aren’t I like this sorry lump of clay? Cracked, dry, worn out, uncentered, and unfit for the process of being made? Yea. I totally am like that lump. But …