One of the things about me is that I really enjoy learning new things. I think that because I tend to be someone who gets super focused on something- it's nice to pull back now and then and do something fresh just for fun. It helps me lighten up and reminds me why I'm an artist in the first place. Don't get me wrong- I struggle and sometimes get really frustrated when I'm trying a new thing but there is something really satisfying when or maybe if I start to get the hang of it. There was one time when I had taken a crochet class. I was totally excited because I had never crocheted before and I really wanted to make some cute stuffed animals. I had dreams of making a cute little lobster and I thought little bunnies would be fun. The bar was set high in my mind and I thought I was going to pump a whole bunch of new things out and have a blast! When I arrived, the class was pretty full but there were two instructors so I was pumped! People in the class were really friendly and everyone was excited. I think I might have been the only one without any experience in crocheting but I was ready to learn. Anyway- we each had our materials and the teachers gave a demo and then we all jumped right in. At first I thought- "yeah, I'm crocheting!! It's happening!" After a bit of time though- I realized something wasn't right. I ended up taking it all apart and starting again. I was more careful and asked for clarification to get started and thought- "okay- shaky start but we got this now." Well....that happened about 6 more times until the end of my 3 hour class. As everyone else was finishing their cute little animals, stuffing them full with batting and securing eyes and details on, here I was still just trying to get anything that resembled crochet. I was frustrated and it was the first time in a very long time that I had been the VERY WORST in the class. I was a little embarrassed and bummed but as I walked home from the class I started laughing to myself- how funny was that?! I mean- yes I walked away not learning how to really crochet and with nothing to show for the time and money spent on the class but I learned some things about myself for sure. When I got home my husband asked me how class was and I told him "it didn't work out so well." He felt bad and asked what happened. I told him and then said..."do you want to see what I made?" He said yes and this is what I showed him....BEHOLD the THUMB HAT!
And then we laughed for about 10 minutes straight. I haven't tried crochet again since but it doesn't mean I won't! I still carry those dreams of creating cute little forest animals and sea creatures. And what a fun story to tell...because sometimes what I need is to laugh at myself more and take myself seriously less.