Patience

It is often said that patience is a virtue. Indeed it is. I am not flush with copious amounts of patience, unfortunately. It is a quality that I struggle with at times. Despite the struggle, I really want Patience to win. She deserves it, after all, being such a mellow gal.

Why do I mention patience? The last few weeks of glass bead making have been IMPOSSIBLE! I am in the midst of my first official glass testing experience and everything that can go wrong, has gone wrong. Exploding glass, torch head with flames shooting out the sides, sooty and blackened beads, wonky beads. It's as if I have forgotten how to work the glass. Ever had that happen to you? Good news is, I finally discovered why so many difficulties. One glass-exploding day a few weeks ago, some shards of glass took up residence in my torch head. It never occurred to me to check the torch head. I just realized it yesterday. So now I know why almost all of my beads have come out all smoky and gross. I have since cleaned my torch head and, finally, I am back in business. Sigh of relief.

Patience also has come in handy for my current metalsmithing class. Last post I mentioned the sawing difficulties I had been experiencing. Well, I put in a little practice time, watched a few tutorials posted online by my instructor and, I can truthfully say, my sawing has improved. A lot. Yay for me! I did learn one valuable lesson in class last week. Actually, two valuable lessons: 1) Never, EVER, get your finger(s) in the way of the saw blade. It may be teeny-tiny, but it can do some serious damage. No, I didn't need stitches and, yes, I left a blood trail on the way to get a bandage. 2) Never, EVER, get distracted while sawing. Save the chat session for those less risky moments in your life. That being said, my biggest concern that night was whether or not I got blood on my project. I didn't. I was elated that I was able to finish my sawing for the class that night! And my finger is mending nicely. It should be good-to-go come time for my next class!

The following may seem like a complete change of subject but, trust me, it ties in to our subject today. In the last several months, I have been busy bonding with my three new-ish cats. They are still technically kittens, but getting seriously large now. Two of them are Bengals- a fascinating breed of cat. They are part Asian leopard, part domestic cat (usually Abyssinian) and completely unique. I was told they would be "playful", "kitten-like all of their lives", a bit rowdy, good jumpers. These cats are anything but ordinary. They could be in the circus! They are incredibly acrobatic, full of grace, rambunctious, obsessive, sweet, skittish, somewhat destructive, and totally loveable. They keep me on my toes and require a large dose of PATIENCE to live with their non-stop antics. Not to be overlooked is my one sweet tortoiseshell shorthair domestic cat- just a garden-variety type of cat, looks-wise. Personality-wise, she is a force of nature, up to the task of garnering her share of our attention. (Photo in this post is of my male Bengal, nosing the camera lens!)

"One moment of patience may ward off great disaster. One moment of impatience may ruin a whole life."- Chinese proverb

"Patience is also a form of action."- Auguste Rodin