The Power of Crafting in Company by Diane Gilleland

In my experience, there is nothing more healing than crafting in a group of people. The beauty of this is, they can be old friends or complete strangers - the craft bridges any gap and creates connection. 

When you're making things, that connection between your mind and hands quiets your anxieties and opens your heart. This works when you're crafting alone, too, of course, but it's especially powerful in the presence of other people. Let's face it, most of us harbor a little social anxiety when we're in a group. But when we're crafting, that mind-hands connection gives the anxious energies a channel, leaving us more relaxed and open to sharing of ourselves. It's a fast track past the small talk and into deeper bonds.

 

I experienced this transformation every month for over six years when I organized a local chapter of the Church of Craft (http:/www.churchofcraft.org). At every meeting, people would arrive, sit down at a big table with strangers, and begin crafting. Two hours later, they looked like a group of lifelong friends.

 

I think local crafting groups can be very powerful in this age of economic and social turmoil. No matter what our differences are, we need each other - we need to cooperate and trade with each other in order to withstand tough times. And we need to better understand one another in order to move forward as a society.

 

And all this powerful change can begin with a circle of chairs, a few cups of tea, and acts of making. 

Comments

[New Balance Sneakers]

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[Senior Planning Services]

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