Some years ago, I took up small woodworking projects. Working a piece of wood with my hands gets my mind off everything else, gives me a job that I can touch and see, and allows me to relax a little. What I enjoy most about it, though, is that I always learn something from the wood in the process.
Each piece of wood seems to have its own personality. I say ‘personality’ because at one time that wood was alive. It took in nourishment, it breathed, it grew.
Working it in my hands, especially while hand sanding, I am connecting with a unique piece of life. Despite being quite allergic to wood dust I prefer to go maskless, taking in the fragrances as small bits of the wood assimilate with my respiratory system.
The personality comes out as I notice how easily or hard the wood accepts a pencil, cuts, and sands. The personality of each piece of wood can vary within itself just as it can vary with pieces cut from the same source.
I used to get frustrated by all the variance. I have a tendency toward perfection, which the wood resists. Sometimes I never know where some of the wood’s ‘imperfections’ will appear until after the last coats of stain and clear coat are applied. Each piece has its own imperfections and it seems to resist hiding them.
I have become much more appreciative of the ‘imperfections.’ They are just as much part of the personality of the wood as its more ‘perfect’ features. In fact, it is the imperfections by which I can clearly distinguish near-exact projects from another one. The wood is unique and won’t allow me to recreate it as indistinguishable.
The other thing about working with a piece of wood is its willingness to forgive my imperfections, if I am patient. Early on, if I messed up a cut or accidentally dented it or sanded a little too much off, I sometimes threw it out and started again. Now I know that if I am patient – cut a little closer or sand more carefully – the wood will allow me to reshape my mistakes.
As many times as the wood has surprised me by revealing imperfections, either its own or mine, I have learned that imperfection is just part of the experience of living things. It is the imperfections that make that wood and my life like none other. With acceptance and patience, and perhaps some “cutting and sanding,” I can allow those imperfections to reshape me into a unique living being.
#perfection #imperfection #lifewithpurpose #forgiveness #woodworking