Oak

It was like a dream... A forest of oak trees with permission to cut what I wanted... I wandered through the branch-strewn spaces... A particular juncture caught my eye... A journey began...

jade

There is an ease with which the extreme hardness of a piece of jade settles into pine. Time taken to sand and buff towards a scintillating smoothness of the blending of connection of two completely different worlds. It is possible. Patience and understanding, foolishness and a steadfast gaze...

electricity

I have used power tools. Ripping and tearing grains to shreds. Fast and furious, but as a sanding disk forms shadow within the dust, it can actually be a quite beautiful experience. What is time.

chisels

Discovering chisels, I was at first hesitant to explore beyond a safe, controlled movement upon simple surfaces. But I slowly began acknowledging the blade's urge towards more depth. In the concave spaces of spoons I began to recognize a pattern of smoothness against stress, of grain flow and points where the chisel could move against the grain and still move smoothly, while at other points there remains a tension that all but disallows the chisel to pass over those specific areas. I feel like I'm in a boat in new waters, learning to navigate upon a surface whose personality changes with the course of the tides, the boat's bow urging itself through the pliant clefts of sea...

Mud

The mud's woven dampness within the last lingering snow deep in the forest, tracks from the logging machines leaving ribbons in their waste. Piles of branches scattered like Easter eggs, I dig in.

Crystal

"Someday you're goona see that crystal for just what it is - a rock."

Emerald

I was sanding in the sunshine. Wondering at the emerald's glow as its sheen broke free.