Tomorrow, I’ll celebrate my wedding anniversary.
I just finished my first spoon and plan to give it it to my wife as a gift. The spoon is a little rough around the edges, as am I, but I made it with love. Spooncarving is my attempt in this crazy distracted world to focus on what’s at hand, connect with people who practice a craft, and make simple yet functional things.
My wife made a passing comment one day a few months ago that I might enjoy the book Heirloom Wood: A Modern Guide to Carving Spoons, Bowls, Boards, and Other Homewares by Max Bainbridge and she was right as she usually is. I loved it and that simple remark was the spark that lit the fire.
After 13 years of marriage, I know relationships require patience if they are to succeed. I’m trying to remember that idea as I flirt with carving. There will be cut fingers, cracked spoon bowls, dull blades and other trials, but perseverance brings the love that lives deep inside right next the heart.
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I worked on two spoons tonight. I have so much work to do but that is part of the process to stay humble, maintain a beginner’s mind and persevere. It’s a lesson of not comparing myself with others, but instead to do what I did tonight, and just carve. Yes, I would like to be part of the spoon carving community, and eventually, I hope that I can share my work with others, but that’s not where I am at and that is okay.
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I spent some of the afternoon carving and I actually did pretty good with the axe. The apple wood was green so it was really easy to carve. I called the spoon my “kazoo spoon” because that’s what it looks like. I’m very interested in kolrosing and hope to try it after I know what I am doing with spoons.