Yeah, sometimes we crafters get no respect. People tease us, malign us, and make fun of us. But that’s only because they don’t understand the awesome regenerative power of creativity, a power which is self-evident. Without creativity, you’d be dead. Which is why any creative or learning endeavor should be sacred and valued, not laughed at.
In a world where so much of what we do is ethereal and transitory, crafts announce, “I was here.” They provide a sort of ordering calm as we take the chaos of materials and turn them into a new and beautiful design. Crafts give us a sense of mastery over our environment. We feel good because we have turned nothing into something of value, which is for most of us, the sign of a life well-lived. As we stitch or paste or assemble, we know we are engaging in something which we hope will bring joy or discovery or comfort to another person. So each action is imbued with a sort of meditative focus on gratitude.
Years ago, I needed to make a page about my father. The page was to be a part of a book I was writing on scrapbooking. Now, my dad died at age 48 of alcoholism. He was not a happy, friendly drunk. He was an angry, bitter man who was hurtful in so many ways.
To make the page, I needed more background information. I called my mother and asked questions. I called my grandmother and talked with her.
I started work. As I did, something hard and painful broke loose inside of me. I pasted down the photo of my father as a young man in the Navy, and I wept. I cried for his lost potential. I cried because I was forced to see him in a new light—the light of his youth when the world was his for the taking.
Crafts heal. And frankly, I’m a bit sick of being an apologist (my fault! I admit) when folks come up and sneer about how important they are.
NOTE: I will draw the winner of our signed set of Malice books late tonight. If you haven’t entered, go back through the Mondays (April 30, March 6, March 13, March 20, and March 27) and find all the clue words. Then email those clue words to me at savetales@aol.com Be sure to put Malice in the subject line.
