Smashing My Way Out Of A Funk

Life gets busy.  For those of us craving a simple life, sometimes things get crazy and full of ... well ... life.  We are coming out of our busy time of year, but somehow things are not getting any slower.  Dance season is over and yet the momentum of all of the things we do throws us forward beyond the point where we would like to stop and take a breath.

I guess it takes a show of will to put the breaks on and force life into a more manageable pace.  I have started to put my feet down to the earth in hopes of bleeding off a little speed.  I have decided to try and do little things each night.  I am trying to accept the fact that they may be eensy-weensy things.

A year or so ago, I put aside a piece of oak that had a branch coming out of the side.  I was thinking that it might make a good dipper or ladle.  As the piece dried, however, it cracked in such a way that it would not hold water.  As a result, it sat ... and sat ... and sat.  Until one day, I decided that I could make a primitive hammer out of it.  I would cut off the smaller branch, drill a hole in the main branch, and attach the small branch as a handle.  Then ... it sat ... and sat ... and sat.  Sorry, I didn't think to take a picture of the piece until after I cut it.

This spring, I finally took the plunge and made the hammer.  I followed the plan, using only hand tools ... a bow saw, an old hand-crank drill, and lots of elbow grease.  To attach the handle, I carve the end of the small branch to fit the hole snugly, inserted it, and filled the gaps with wood glue mixed with the sawdust from the cutting and drilling.  I was satisfied with the result and let it sit for a week or so to dry completely.

Tonight, wanting to make a holder for a bee feeder, I decided to use the hammer.  First, I cut a piece of birch from a log.  Then, I used the hammer and a gouge to carve out a bowl.  I did not get to finish, but the idea is to carve a bottomless bowl that a quart sized wide mouth canning jar can sit in upside down.  The jar has a lid with tiny holes in it and is filled with sugar water.  I want the lid off of the ground (plastic lid, birch bark bowl, or some such) so that the bees can reach the liquid by crawling under the whole rig.  Of course, now I am not sure if I want to keep the bowl as a bowl (before I break through the bottom) or continue with the plan.  I will have to wait until tomorrow, or the next time I work on it to decide.  Of course, if the bowl cracks as it dries, the choice will be made.

It feels good to start moving again, in the direction I want to travel rather than that required by the trappings of modern life.  I simply wish to spend more time on my MooseBoots path and less of the distractions of modern society ... someday, perhaps.  In the meantime, I wish you all joy, beauty, and love on the path you wander.