My students finished their first set of chairs today. This set is for our new guidance counselor. The nicest thing about these chairs is obviously the skills that my students now have and the feelings that go along with knowing they can do something like this. Now they want to do more. "Let's build a table," one student called out. Their confidence is perking up. It's as if they've won something and they want to repeat that feeling. I love woodworking, and chairs are fun to build. However, when I see the my students reaping the same benefits from building these chairs as I have, I get excited. They have acquired some woodworking skills, confidence, self-trust, independence, patience and a greater level of appreciation for things that are made by hand. Those of us who work with our hands understand that there is love involved. It has been said that when we make things we give form to ourselves as well as to the materials we work with. I enjoy using woodworking and chair building to help build better humans. I consider this part of my job to be very important.
 | |||
| This proud young man is on his way to deliver a chair that he helped to build. |
