Saturday, April 10, 2010

Woven Thoughts...A Life that is Woven

I have always compared my weaving life to that of my spiritual walk.  It is hard to put into words, but let me try to explain why I feel the two are interwoven.  Not many people are able to own a weaving loom and create the beautiful pieces that I am able to create, I know that and I am grateful for the artistic path that I chose for my life.

I can remember when my son was just one year old I began taking weaving lessons from a wonderful teacher in her home.  Once a week my mom would watch my little guy so that I could go and spend three hours learning to weave.  It was a wonderful time in my life and I knew that I was beginning something that was extraordinary!  I wanted to own a loom and one day I did.  I was able to rent to own a beautiful new solid cherry weaving loom for just $35.00 a month.  At the time that was a financial strain, but it was so worth it!  My loom was the first piece of furniture I had in the living room of my new home and the rest of the furnishings were built around it.  My son will turn thirty this summer and I have been weaving and designing all that time.  What a creative journey it has been.  I have been in art shows, been featured in art galleries, became part owner in Blue Skies Gallery for several years, taught weaving to others in the quietness of my home and at the Contemporary Art Center in Virginia Beach, became a weaving loom dealer and created my own weaving business called The Gentle Thread. My artwork was even featured in Portfolio Magazine.   All these steps were part of my personal creative journey.

The loom is amazing and the woven fabric it creates is even more amazing.  The warp of the loom, which creates the strength of the woven piece I compare to the foundation of my life.  My spiritual foundation, God which gives me strength in all things. Now a warp does not become the woven piece of cloth until it crosses with the weft.  The weft is the beautiful yarns, the colors and textures that are woven over the warp.  Here is where creation a one of a kind piece of cloth begins, the beauty begins to unfold. This is what I compare to the experiences we go through in life. The people we meet (many colorful in personality), the heartaches, the joys, the dreams,  the ups and downs that are all  a part of one's life journey... they are all interwoven. Without the warp (that which gives us our strength and foundation in our lives) it could never become the woven piece.

I am grateful to have realized that and have been able to intermingle my passion for weaving with my own metaphor for life.  I will continue to weave and recognize it as a gift of creative expression.  How lucky I am to sit at my loom and relax and take this all in!