When I stop to think about why I truely carve, several reasons come to mind. Spending countless hours wheeling a chainsaw and assorted other tools for hours, staring at a log and being covered in sawdust for what? For me its the creative side of turning a vision, a thought or idea and dupicating it in the wood. Carving and reflecting, thinking whether I need to remove more from this area or that, reshaping an area that just doesn’t look quite right until the piece finally takes shape. I’m sure more time spent would mean perfection, or would it? Sometimes you just have to walk away and come back to it to be sure. You can spend countless hours detailing a project but it comes to a point that the time spent surpasses the return you can expect. So spend your time wisely. Another reason I carve is the mental release it provides to put on some headphones with my favorite music which changes based on my mood that day and forget about everything else going on and get lost in the log. It’s very theroputic and relaxing to spend the entire day disconnected from the outside world the daily stress and pressures and just be one with the chainsaw. But the true reason I believe I carve is for the joy and excitement you can give others with your abilities, to see their eyes light up when they see the final completion.
I recently did a carving for a customer that was so moved by what I created for her and her husband that she posted this on her Facebook page….
So…This is what happens when a man cuts down a very large tree. An ugly stump? An eyesore? If that is what you see, then that is what you see. I didn’t see that at all. I saw potential. This tree is at least 150 years old… imagine its history! I visualized what could be done if the right person got ahold of that stump. So…This is what happens when a man with that potential turned that ugly stump into a masterpiece. He had to cut, carve, chip, detail, repeat…. until it was perfect in his eyes. Then he clear coated the finished product so it could withstand the storms and weather that will surely come its way. I didn’t get to see Jeff work on this today, but his craftsmanship reminded me of how God works on us. Little at a time, until we are His masterpiece. Thank you, Jeff, for taking your day off and putting your handiwork in our backyard. For turning a piece of history into a masterpiece. We love it!!! …Our happy place just got happier!! And thank you Sandy for loaning him out for the day… he’ll get to your project next week! 
☺️
