Saturday, July 23, 2011
This site will be moving to a new name soon!
Life is constantly changing and so is everything else! My new blog (as neglected as it is) will be under the name d'Paige Turner. But I have not yet been brave enough to merge the two, for fear of loosing everything under this one! But I invite you to visit it as well ~ it is sorta sparse right now, but that will change. Soon, very soon... If you would like to check it out, just click on the picture of the feather quill pen on the left sidebar!
Monday, January 24, 2011
The parable of the sandstone coaster...
This is not about reading. It is not about writing. It is a 'life experience' I would like to share with you.
As any parent knows, raising a young teenager can sometimes be daunting. If the young person is 'special needs', it can be down right overwhelming, sometimes. Even under ideal conditions. I found myself in this frame of mind the other day. With multiple large tasks (some quite important) on my 'to do' list, I realized what I really needed was a brief break. To take a deep breath, renew my resolve, exhale and clear my mind. Just for a bit. So I went out to the sun-room to do just that.
After a minute or two, I was drawn out of my self imposed meditation by the cooing of a dove. He seemed to represent the Holy Spirit himself! "Thank you, God," I said out loud and sincerely, "for everything! But right now, thank you most for this moment of peace!" My eyes were then drawn to a broken coaster that I had refused to discard but neglected to fix. I gathered the few items I'd need, i.e. glasses, glue and toothpicks, and hesitated. The coaster had a lovely artistic rendering of a dragonfly with iridescent wings. One reason I had not attempted to fix it before was because I was afraid that my 'repair' would mar it forever, if not done properly. Sandstone is the most fragile of stones, prone to chipping and crumbling. It is also very porous, which makes it so unique as a coaster. That is the 'background'. Now this, is the parable:
The adhesive used to bind the two pieces had to be applied with a toothpick. Too much and it would ooze out and ruin the picture on the surface. Too little and the bond would not hold. Working with glue and a toothpick requires patience. That is, if it is to be done properly.
Then, the two pieces need to be fitted together, carefully. The closer the fit to the original break, the better the results. Minuscule adjustments one way or the other can make all the difference in the final outcome.
Next, pressure should be applied to the pieces. Gentle pressure. You don't want to crumble the stone. Firm pressure. You do want it to bond strong. But the pressure forces the excess adhesive to bead up along the crack.
Very carefully, so as not to gouge the fragile stone at the break line, a fresh toothpick is used to remove the tiny beads of glue that have been pushed to the surface. More than one toothpick. One for each tiny bead. If the glue is smeared beyond the crack line, when drys it will leave an obvious mark of the repair. Again, patience.
When you think you have all of the excess glue removed, yet another tiny bead appears. And yet another. By this time, the glue is getting tacky and is prone to stringing. So merely 'picking' the beads off with the head of the toothpick is not enough. You have to sort of scoop them off with a flourish of the wrist, so that string of glue does not land on the surface of the sandstone. Tedious, but this attention to the tiniest detail will be the difference between a 'job done' and a 'job well done'.
When the last bit of surface glue is finally removed, hold the two pieces together for a bit longer. Again, firm but gentle constant pressure.
The next day, the original break across the sandstone is barely noticeable! The line along the break that was so obvious when the repair was first completed has now disappeared after the glue has dried completely. The tedious effort and attention to detail has paid off! The coaster is now as lovely and useful as any other that had never been broken!
Some of you reading this may be bored to tears by now. Others may think, 'OK, coaster repair 101. Big deal.' That's why I gave you a little background information on my frame of mind before I gave the illustration. It's doubtful that it will affect anyone as profoundly as it did me at the time. I felt like the Holy Spirit himself was teaching me a valuable lesson. Hopefully some of you may glean something from it. For those who didn't, here is the parable explained: As my sub-conscience mind told my hands what they needed to do, my conscience mind was drawing references to life. Things I needed to do in order to achieve a 'job well done'.
Patience. Proceed slow, but steady. Once you begin, continue without stopping if you want to succeed. Imperfections will arise. Again, patience and a steady hand. Hold close. Gently. But firmly. When you think you're done, more imperfections will likely arise. You have to be flexible. Do what you have to do with no set preconceptions to hinder you. But most important; Have patience! Be gentle! Hold close!
Our children are our greatest blessing. Raising them the best we can is our greatest challenge. Seeing them succeed is our greatest reward! May God bless and keep you all!
As any parent knows, raising a young teenager can sometimes be daunting. If the young person is 'special needs', it can be down right overwhelming, sometimes. Even under ideal conditions. I found myself in this frame of mind the other day. With multiple large tasks (some quite important) on my 'to do' list, I realized what I really needed was a brief break. To take a deep breath, renew my resolve, exhale and clear my mind. Just for a bit. So I went out to the sun-room to do just that.
After a minute or two, I was drawn out of my self imposed meditation by the cooing of a dove. He seemed to represent the Holy Spirit himself! "Thank you, God," I said out loud and sincerely, "for everything! But right now, thank you most for this moment of peace!" My eyes were then drawn to a broken coaster that I had refused to discard but neglected to fix. I gathered the few items I'd need, i.e. glasses, glue and toothpicks, and hesitated. The coaster had a lovely artistic rendering of a dragonfly with iridescent wings. One reason I had not attempted to fix it before was because I was afraid that my 'repair' would mar it forever, if not done properly. Sandstone is the most fragile of stones, prone to chipping and crumbling. It is also very porous, which makes it so unique as a coaster. That is the 'background'. Now this, is the parable:
The adhesive used to bind the two pieces had to be applied with a toothpick. Too much and it would ooze out and ruin the picture on the surface. Too little and the bond would not hold. Working with glue and a toothpick requires patience. That is, if it is to be done properly.
Then, the two pieces need to be fitted together, carefully. The closer the fit to the original break, the better the results. Minuscule adjustments one way or the other can make all the difference in the final outcome.
Next, pressure should be applied to the pieces. Gentle pressure. You don't want to crumble the stone. Firm pressure. You do want it to bond strong. But the pressure forces the excess adhesive to bead up along the crack.
Very carefully, so as not to gouge the fragile stone at the break line, a fresh toothpick is used to remove the tiny beads of glue that have been pushed to the surface. More than one toothpick. One for each tiny bead. If the glue is smeared beyond the crack line, when drys it will leave an obvious mark of the repair. Again, patience.
When you think you have all of the excess glue removed, yet another tiny bead appears. And yet another. By this time, the glue is getting tacky and is prone to stringing. So merely 'picking' the beads off with the head of the toothpick is not enough. You have to sort of scoop them off with a flourish of the wrist, so that string of glue does not land on the surface of the sandstone. Tedious, but this attention to the tiniest detail will be the difference between a 'job done' and a 'job well done'.
When the last bit of surface glue is finally removed, hold the two pieces together for a bit longer. Again, firm but gentle constant pressure.
The next day, the original break across the sandstone is barely noticeable! The line along the break that was so obvious when the repair was first completed has now disappeared after the glue has dried completely. The tedious effort and attention to detail has paid off! The coaster is now as lovely and useful as any other that had never been broken!
Some of you reading this may be bored to tears by now. Others may think, 'OK, coaster repair 101. Big deal.' That's why I gave you a little background information on my frame of mind before I gave the illustration. It's doubtful that it will affect anyone as profoundly as it did me at the time. I felt like the Holy Spirit himself was teaching me a valuable lesson. Hopefully some of you may glean something from it. For those who didn't, here is the parable explained: As my sub-conscience mind told my hands what they needed to do, my conscience mind was drawing references to life. Things I needed to do in order to achieve a 'job well done'.
Patience. Proceed slow, but steady. Once you begin, continue without stopping if you want to succeed. Imperfections will arise. Again, patience and a steady hand. Hold close. Gently. But firmly. When you think you're done, more imperfections will likely arise. You have to be flexible. Do what you have to do with no set preconceptions to hinder you. But most important; Have patience! Be gentle! Hold close!
Our children are our greatest blessing. Raising them the best we can is our greatest challenge. Seeing them succeed is our greatest reward! May God bless and keep you all!
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