Stab, Stab, Stab
And then it was May -
And the horses were shedding
And the lilacs leafing out
And the clouds stormy
And I hadn’t written in over a month.
Such is life.
Largely, I have no reason for this other than the fact that I just didn’t have the energy to sit and concentrate for long enough to get the words out. There also hasn’t been a whole lot to report - while exhausting, small human care is quite repetitive.
The exception to this relatively same-y spring we’ve been having came a few weeks back, when we had to make an unplanned visit back to Wisconsin to be with family.
On a Tuesday, we got the call and made arrangements to go. We were “those people” with a baby on a plane by Friday (though, I have to say - Remi did great and was very NOT annoying to the other passengers, according to the other passengers). And by the following Monday? We were back home again. It was a lot - and the increased sleep deprivation from those few days means that I am relying on phone pictures to remind myself it even happened.
But it did. We went. There was a fair amount of sadness, but much joy too. Remi got to meet the extended family and we ate more cheese than was probably healthy. Luck also gifted us the chance to see the northern lights and, while we watched them flicker overhead, we were serenaded by wolf song in the distance. I checked two items off my bucket list that night.
In everything I do right now, I am trying to remember that any project can be completed in five minute increments. It may take a lifetime, but it can be done. Luckily for me, I have reached a new stage of work on my pincushions and am now creating in ten minute chunks - incredible!
To give them that juicy, pincushion-y dimension I turned to needle felting - essentially the art of stabbing loose wool with a barbed needle until the fibers tangle and begin to take on form. It’s sort of like sculpting, slowly and methodically building up the shape with layer upon layer of wool, but much more cathartic because of that needle.
No morning walk because it’s raining? Stab, stab, stab.
Dogs tracked mud through the entire house? Stab, stab, stab.
Kiddo refuses to nap? Stab, stab…you get the idea.
The best part about this section of the project is also that I can work on it while Remi and I are hanging out together. Both cushions were formed while he happily rolled around on a yoga mat. I could get used to this…but I’d better not. I’ve got a feeling this kid’s going to be mobile sooner than later, at which point our days of quietly arting on the floor will be a thing of the past!
