Dear god, I say “ummmm” too much!

Why do I know this? 

Because I’m getting ready to teach my first online class that involves a lot of videos. And, as I’ve been editing them, I’ve realized, wow, I really do say “ummmm” a whole lot. It’s such a good place holder for my mouth when I need to catch up with my thoughts, but not ideal to listen to! I’m very grateful for iMovie editing features!

I’m also extremely grateful for…

~ The chance to bring Weaving Your Story to more people~ this is a class I built, drawing together my passions from years of work and study, both as a therapist and as a weaver. I feel so strongly about what weaving offers to people, aesthetically, emotionally, in community. 

~ The Shelburne Craft School, and especially its director, Heather Moore, who right out of the gate expressed interest in the way I use weaving in my work with people, and wondered if we might build a class around it. And that’s just what we did! Through that process, I’ve learned about writing grants and partnering with other organizations, while expanding my own skill set as I’ve offered this work to a larger group. I’ve also gotten to teach a dear friend and colleague, Ali Waltien, how to offer Weaving Your Story in her work. How amazing!

~

~ The Vermont Arts Council, who awarded us the Creative Aging grant.  

~ An anonymous donor who has made the class available to even more people.

~ Weaving Your Story participants who take the leap into weaving… well…  their stories! This takes courage, patience, trust, and flexibility, and with every single group, I learn and grow. 

~ My weaving teachers, Lausanne Allen, Susan Barrett Merrill, Rebecca Mezoff, Elizabeth Buckley, and Susan Powers, … I’m so fortunate to have these people as part of my weaving journey. They share and encourage, inspire, and know their craft inside and out.

~ My daughter who has been helping me learn how to make and edit videos, export, upload and put into the airwaves the online version of the class. 

That all reads like an acceptance speech! Seriously though, I’d be remiss to talk about the Weaving Your Story classes without expressing all the gratitude I feel for those who have given so much to me, so there we are. 

Now, back to editing my videos! If I can reduce my “ummmmms” by 75% or more, I think it’ll be okay. 

Weave me a rope that will pull me through these impossible times.

~ from, Not Even Close, Tim Finn