Our eight year old granddaughter, Lily recently spent an afternoon in the shop. She always asks to work on something when she is here. During this visit she spent a good part of the time on my bench sanding wood. After the excitement of that wore off, she took some colored markers and began the art process. As they have grown, all three of our granddaughters have spent time in the shop. Whenever they have been here, they always want to “work”. I always encourage it with lots of available wood blocks and sawdust. Who knows where it will lead? Plus, their parents love to see them after a couple of hours of creativity! Lily completed a couple of projects this visit, here’s one.
I count myself as one of the lucky ones. Lucky in the sense that I am able to make a living doing something that I actually like to do. How many people do you know that think of their work as drudgery? I can name several. We see examples all the time as clients visit the shop. Most, but not all, are men who ask to tour the shop area. Their faces tell the story as they look longingly at the tools, the wood, and the sawdust. Generally they will leave with a comment like “nice shop”, “wish I could do this”, or “man, your lucky”. Yea, I am. Any artist or artisan will tell you there is a great reward in creating something with your hands.
It’s too bad that most school systems don’t see much benefit in teaching kids to use their hands anymore. When you see the concentration and effort young kids such as Lily put into a small project it makes you wonder why? I follow a blog written by an educator that is trying to change that. Take a look at www.wisdomofhands.blogspot.com. And, take a look at Lily’s latest creation.
I’ll teach her to use the power tools when she’s a little taller.
