Craftsmanship

Craftsmanship

I've been thinking about that word lately and I thought I'd tie it in with my Veteran's Day tribute.

There are 2 reasons I've been thinking about it. The first is because my wonderful husband gave me a glass blowing class (one of the Amazon local deals) for Valentine's Day. The glass ball hanging over my kitchen sink is my creation from that class and I finally just got it hung over the weekend. I was waiting until I got my curtains made and in place, because they were meant to go together. This is the window over my kitchen sink.  

 I'm one of those weird people that likes to do dishes by hand. I grew up in a house without a dishwasher and I hated it when it was my week to do dishes (yes, we had a weekly rotation and yes, there were 12 people total in my family, but several were a way at college by the time I got to dish duty age).  Now I love doing dishes, because it is my time to think...I mean really think. Some people get answers to life's problems in the shower, for me it's while I'm doing dishes. Now I have something that makes me happy to look at while doing dishes and pondering deep thoughts. (Fabric is from Ikea, but it doesn't appear to be sold any more)

Back to the glass blowing class....it was hard! The knowledge and skills required for that craft are amazing. You need scientific knowledge (melting temps, chemical reactions to get the right colors, just to name a few), physical stamina (it's HOT in the studio!) and patience for this craft. It was such a fun experience, but I gained a deep appreciation for those that choose to keep a craft like glass blowing alive.

 The other reason I've been thinking about craftsmanship is because I recently watched all of the episodes of Life on the Edwardian Farm. It's kind of a reality tv show for history junkies like me, done over in England by the BBC. It was fascinating to say the least to see all of these crafts and ways of life play out as they tried to make living on a farm in that era work. One of things they said though was how it's sad that a lot of these old crafts aren't being passed down and how these types of craftsman are hard to find. The interesting thing they said though that the real catalyst wasn't the Industrial Revolution, but WW1. The loss of the young men that would have taken over the craft shops was so great that many of the skills just disappeared.  There was no one to pass the skills on to in England...that many young men had died.

And that is how this post is a tribute to those men and women that serve to keep us free. Their sacrifice is great indeed, because what they are willing to give up is impactful to not only themselves but all of us. And I'm not talking about just the skills they possess, but to the influence they have to those around them and the lives they touch on a daily basis. 

Today and every day I honor them. 

(There are strong ties to the US Navy in my family with my 2 grandfathers, my dad, several uncles, my brother and my sister having served with it, but there is also some having served in Army and Coast Guard as well)