Finished Apron!

I’m so excited, I finally finished my first apron that includes a block print. It was an adventure, figuring out how to set the ink in the fabric, and getting everything together. I finished it last night and I’m really happy with how it turned out. It’s a pocket-palooza of apron. All told it’s got 7 pockets. I’ve got Pocket Power! I feel like I need a wondertwin. Form of giant panda!

The kids have been watching the old school Super Friends shows. It’s amazing how watching something as an adult that I watched as a kid has the effect of destroying happy memories. Wow. That show is BAD. No plot, no character development, and so very very cheesy. Oh well. The kids love it.

I decided to make my picture of my creativity for Creative Every Day a story today to go with Leah’s March theme of Stories. This is a story about a family that makes things themselves, that tries to hang on to the idea that living simply, eating good food, and taking care of your friends and family are what are important in life. It’s been a long road to get to such simple ideas.

We’re making saurkraut, by the way. I make it every fall, but I’ve had a few requests from friends for some more, and since we’re running pretty low, I figured it was time for 15 more pounds to get fermenting!

Back to the story:

When I was in college I felt very alone and meaningless. It was a dark time for me. Life seemed pointless. Then the thought occured to me: if I assumed that there was no meaning to life, then all meanings had an equal value. If that was true, then it seemed to me that I could assign whatever value I wanted to them. Meaninglessness became freedom to choose what meaning I wanted rather than trying to live by other peoples values. Life since then has been a journey of evolving meaning. It’s a pretty good place to be.

Creativity, authenticity, simple living, living centered in the place where I am. Eating food from this place, knowing people from this place. I think that is a sacred thing for me. Truly learning how to live here, where I am, on this land, even if it’s in the city, surrounded by traffic and people. It’s satisfying in a way that shopping never was. It’s like the difference between a fresh baked loaf of bread and a candy bar. One leaves you full and nourished, and the other leaves you with a belly ache and a sugar crash.