at the kitchen table
at the kitchen table
This past winter I was commissioned to make the aprons you see in the picture. The order was for 25 - 2 adult and 23 child size. At first I was thrilled to get such a large order. Then when the project was started I realized that I would be doing the very same motions for each and every one of those little suckers. Same stitches, same pieces, same size. I had to force myself to finish sewing them together. The logo was a little more challenging because the letters were too thick to effectively embroider them on my sewing machine. Screening would have eaten up my profits, so I reverted to something my mother had taught me when I was a child. I hand-embroidered each one of the aprons. The cool thing was that I could use a variety of stitches, making each apron unique. They are finished now, and as I reflect on the process, I have realized that this project consumed my psyche, producing quite a bit of lethargy and depressed feelings.
I know when I am diving down into that deep dark well when I can’t read. I had a stack of books that I had planned to start working on reading right after the holidays, but they sat unexplored until last week, right after I finished the project. Two books down - South of Broad by Pat Conroy and Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen - I am energetic and happy and ready to start book three.
When I read a novel, I usually get into the plot literally. I’m either an onlooker fly on the wall as the action unfolds, or I am one of the characters, experiencing my life as the words go from page to brain. Thanks to the folks who live South of Broad in Charleston, and the enigmatic circus vet, my gardens are getting at least 3 hours of my attention every day, and my house is semi-clean. I’ll probably have to read a couple more books before I start working on the basement and the garage, but I’m hopeful. Besides, I have a lot of good books still in that stack.
Happy reading, y’all. It could be that like me your in-book friends are waiting to help you out of the doldrums.
Reading as Therapy
Thursday, April 14, 2011