When Kathleen and I are on the road, we’re ON THE ROAD. For the first few years we travelled, I liked to pretend that I’d actually get work done, taking my computer and knit projects with me wherever we went.
It became pretty obvious, though, that time on road meant ROAD TIME, and although I’d squeeze out the odd new design, or blog post, the energy required to be present in classes and in the booth meant that our non-show hours were usually just recharging our batteries.
This isn’t a bad thing, although at first I thought it was. Learning to accept that I have limited time and energy forces me to focus more intently on exactly WHAT is the most important thing for me to do. These past two weeks, the most important thing I needed to do was REST.
Physically I was shattered – perhaps a bit mentally, too – and as I told Gerry this morning, “Sitting and resting is the hardest work I’ve ever done!”
Tomorrow I go back into the dye studio, although my assistant will be handling just about EVERY physical aspect of the work. I’m still a mass of pain, my chest burns with the Costochondritis and walking is still a bit painful from the accompanying sciatica.
I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to use Layla (my assistant) to help me bridge the place from not being able to do ANYTHING to doing EVERYTHING myself.
Asking for help is hard. Almost as hard as resting. I have to get better at doing both if I intend to do this rather physical job of yarn dyeing for the long haul!
And – for what it’s worth – I HAVE been working on a new design idea or two during my self-imposed sitting time. Idle hands, and all that. And if I continue to recover as I have been, I’m hoping to be back on my bike sometime this week, just for a mile or so, just to get my muscles used to the feeling of riding.
And I REALLY need some of that riding joy right about now!
Our next show isn’t until August 17, so I have plenty of time to move slowly. It’s the wonderful Michigan Fiber Festival, one of our favorites and it’s in Allegan, MI. Please do come by and say, “Hi!” if you’re in the area — you won’t regret it, it’s a LOVELY show!