My First Art Show Was… Calm!

I’ve noticed that when I have an experience that feels deeply significant, I go quiet. After hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru for my 50th, it took awhile to write about it. Same with the 100-mile kayaking trips through Utah’s serene and stunning canyons each spring. The words sit inside me and incubate while my emotions sift themselves outward.

This weekend felt that way. A year ago, we moved west… all the way west from all the way east… and said hello to everything we did not yet know. I thought it was to be the ultimate opportunity to roadtrip and explore, but what I’ve found is that I finally want to stay in what is now home. We love the close friendships that we’ve quickly formed here. As you know, I also tackled an unconventional (for a girl), manually physical craft. Learning to create woodturned bowls on a spinning lathe using a variety of chisels from what would otherwise be firewood has rooted me somehow. Each morning, I wonder what’s about to emerge from the broken. It’s a metaphor, see? And literally inspiring.

This weekend, I was fortunate enough to be part of something longstanding in this new world we’ve joined. The Arts Council of Placer County (which sounds formal, but is really just a collection of locals dedicated to fostering the creation and sharing of local art) kicked off… for the 25th time… its annual self-guided driving tour along a route that visits 75 artists in the places where they create. Quarter of a century this has been going on! Anyway, I somehow got added to the ranks and it meant scurrying a bit to create enough inventory to sell. I didn’t want people to show up and feel their time had been wasted.

Something important happened before the show ever began… I chose calm. Seriously. I was intentional. Every time I was tempted to get all angsty (ok, anxious) about being a beginner, I chose calm. When it occurred to me that people (including some experienced turners) would watch me turn… hour after hour… in my home shop that we’ve cobbled together… I chose calm. When I found out my mentor who was scheduled to show alongside me had to instead travel to Arizona… I chose calm. When the big day neared and my inventory numbers were lagging… I chose calm. When I recalled two days before the show that I needed a registered California sales permit… I chose calm.

Know what happened as a result? The entire experience was a joy. Seriously, I loved every minute of planning and preparation that led up to it and the three-day event… long 10a-5p days… was such a pleasure that I was stunned by the simplicity of it all.

As I say this I wonder if your first thought is to assume it’s easier for me to choose calm, because Jim clears a path. Yes, in many ways it is. I’m lucky to have someone who cheers my every move and believes I’m capable of achieving any dream. He’s also a hard worker and was the ultimate logistics foreman, setting up/breaking down tables and chairs without complaint and cooking, as he loves to do, for everyone who was willing to eat and wandered near. He told me a million times how proud he is of me.

We have a posse of friends who enthusiastically showed up to pitch in, too. On Friday, Ingrid and her husband Steve showed up at 8am on his day off and their daughter’s birthday to help set up tents and tables and begin greeting the first visitors. Our buddy (who feels like family) Mark flew in from Boulder, Colorado, to help out. I received a gorgeous mid-morning sunflower bouquet from my awesome in-laws, a total surprise that further brightened the day! Saturday, Jen, a superstar friend/coordinator, and our neighbor Ted spent the entire day making things run smoothly. Each time a car arrived, he raced over to escort the guests and park their car. Valet service on our dirt road! Jen had sales hopping. Saturday night, 18 of our close friends who attended gathered to share dinner at our house and celebrate the big weekend. It was such a great way to wrap up a fun day! Sunday, Jen and Mark continued to help alongside Jim.

Meanwhile, I turned bowls and explained the process to the guests who continued to arrive. Oh how they continued to arrive! Twenty-five guests signed up to receive my as-yet-nonexistent newsletter on Friday and at least twice that many dropped in. Saturday easily doubled that. Sunday was busy, again, though the stock was nearly gone by midday. Each time I decided to take a break and headed up our hill to snag a bite of lunch, the Kubota loaned to us by friends Richard and Leslie for the weekend was bringing down more visitors who wanted to watch… so around I turned and picked up where I’d left off. It was exhausting, I suppose… yes I discovered on Monday when I crashed all day just how tired I actually was… but at the time it felt exhilarating. People were curious!! Few things thrill me more.

At the end of the weekend, of the 50 bowls and vessels we had at the start only five of Andy’s and three of mine were left! That felt miraculous… and sure it excites me to know there are a few dollars now in the new account… but genuinely the best part is the people who poured in to find out about this craft. I made new friends and perhaps a few woodturning converts.

Know something? Even with my husband’s and friends’ tireless encouragement and help, I could have still chosen overwhelm and chaos. There were a lot of balls in the air and a LOT going on. Choosing calm transformed the experience… and I believe is one of the qualities that draws people closer and perhaps even influences my life to be so darn good. I’ve followed my Aunt Linda’s lead and choose three daily C’s:  calm, curiosity and cheer [amended – see post script]. (Hers are coffee, cigarettes and Conway Twitty. Hey, we’re from the South!) While I can’t vouch for hers, I highly recommend mine. (Ha)

To each of you who purchased a bowl, I hope you caress it often and whisper occasionally that it’s still valued, despite its previous crash. It will love you back. Please don’t just make it a pretty something never used. Its foodsafe oil finish means it can be put to work often!

If you bought, helped, visited, expressed interest or gave encouragement, I enthusiastically thank you! The weekend blew me away and I’m so grateful!

❤️❤️❤️

 [Post Script: It didn’t feel quite right to say one of my three C’s is cheer. Sure, you see me smiling a lot and that’s real. But, actually, there are plenty of times when I don’t choose cheer. It would feel artificial and, quite frankly, sometimes it’s all I can do to shower. I can be a bittuva hermit (and it kinda suits me). It was that way right after this show weekend. Monday, I accomplished NOTHING and my demeanor matched. I was tired and maybe even wallowing in a bit of post-show funk. It had been so exhilarating to be surrounded by such curious people! Maybe the limelight even felt intoxicating. Anyway, I knew I could choose cheer, just as I can choose calm. I chose funk…. and then, as anyone does who gets up and does what needs to be done, I eventually chose courage. Sitting on the ledge of Angel’s Landing with my legs dangling over isn’t the only place courage surfaces. It’s the sheer force of moving toward what you want most… despite fear or near-paralyzing immobility. So that’s my true third C that I try my best to embrace: courage. Even if it just means getting up and going to step into the shower at last. Three days later.]