I was a much anticipated sixth child in a family of strong, resourceful people

whose faith was integral to their life. Though my parents could be warm, loving and

resourceful, they also struggled to be emotionally present and healthy under stress. My

loom was made with found branches and was a little crooked, symbolizing both the

heritage of resourcefulness, as well as the some of the harsh edges of my family. Like

my family, it is beautiful in the midst of the roughness and imperfection. And it presented

challenges as I began to weave my life, wanting to bend my warp in ways that were

unsatisfactory to me.

I am strong, intelligent, earthy and soft—sensitive, resilient, quiet, peace loving

and thoughtful. I chose three colors to represent myself in my warp. Blue is for the

peaceful waters that I love to immerse my body and feet in. Blue also represents

strength—water seems flexible, soft, and accommodating, but it is also a force to be

reckoned with. I chose the gold lurex to represent a sparkling mind—curious, intelligent

and attentive. It reminds me of the stars, shining out against the backdrop of life when

you can see them. And I chose brown, flecked with purple and green to represent

earthiness, stillness and strength. Being close to the earth strengthens my tender and

peace loving soul, and offers it a soft place to land.

In weaving my story, there have been lovely moments, where I shine and my

strengths stand out, rather than blend in. These moments are represented in the twill

weave, done in bright colors that remind me of stars, sunsets, and bright moments.

There are ordinary moments that are harmonious with who I am, and then there are

darker moments, where life overwhelms me, and I withdraw and am hidden. These

moments are represented in the dark brown twining interspersed in my woven story. In

these times, everything that’s “me” is still there, but it’s not evident to those around me. I

notice that some of the threads I am weaving with are my own creation, my hand spun.

Others were created by someone else. The situations of my life are a collaborative

effort, but I choose how I move through them. As I progress through my woven story,

you can see that I am learning to better manage the times where I am tempted to

withdraw. As I move into the future, I desire to keep strengthening the skills that allow

me to have good boundaries, still show up, seeing that my desires and needs are

addressed. I want to expand those moments when my creativity, strength, softness and

earthiness shine.

Processing my story through the medium of weaving has been rich for me. As I

think through the weekly prompts, new insights and metaphors emerge each time. The

challenges and imperfections I experienced with my loom and weaving seem to only

add to the story. Keeping pace with the course also helped me to let go of perfection, let

it be “good enough” and move through the process. As I move toward what I want in the

future, I am encouraged to use the same lesson to move further into new patterns and solutions.