HGMC July 31st Whittling at The Old Barn 

First and foremost, I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone involved in putting this evening together. Steve, Dave and Vlad for their expertise in guiding us through the evening, and Mike for helping with the location and set up. 

I think the first thing everybody said on arrival was what an incredible location it was. The view dropping down into the valley and rolling green hills beyond looked beautiful in the warm and golden summer sun. The environment felt halcyon and perfectly set the mood for the rest of the evening. With his warm and calming and demeanour, Dave explained a little about what we would be attempting and how to do so safely.  

First task was picking our piece of greenwood and cutting it down to size. Then we could settle into the whittling and start unearthing whatever was hiding in the grain. With gentle guidance and help delivered whenever it was asked for, it didn’t take long for the wood shavings to start flying. The sun still bathing us in a golden glow, there was ample time to talk amongst ourselves while we whittled away. The conversations never seemed to dip and the approaches to our projects began yielding results as different as we are from one another. It was truly affirming to see the members of the group interacting with each other taking time to listen and learn about each other.  

After a couple of hours of this we realised if we didn’t wrap up soon, we’d still be sat here at two in the morning. Finish touches were applied to our pieces and as is tradition at HGMC we began our check out. We all gave an example of something in our lives we’re grateful for, and I asked each member of the group to give an example of something they will do for their own wellbeing in the next week or so. As usual, this slightly stumped a couple of people. It’s important to recognise that doing things for others, although still capable of improving our wellbeing. Is not the same as doing something for ourselves. With a bit of thinking examples were given and the importance of taking time for ourselves was reflected on.  

Continuing the theme of gratitude just established. All the evenings goodbyes were interspersed with “thank yous”. Speaking of which I would also like to thank all the attendees for making it such a great evening. It felt so special to be in that space, with those people seeing how they interact and the joy it was bringing into their lives. It is a genuine privilege to put on these events and to be involved in this community.  

See you at the next one?