Yesterday was the longest day of the year and today marks the first full day of summer and is also Father's Day! I love the change from one season to the next. Though each day is an ever so gradual change from the one before, it seems momentous to mark a day as the first of the new season. So here we are bringing in the warm sunny days that lay ahead, the run through the grass barefoot days, the barbecue and watermelon days, the catching firefly days, the long break from school days. These are fond memories I have of gentler summer's past.
This year is so different for so many with the continuous march of the Covid19 pandemic and the eruption of cries for justice for our brothers and sisters of color, and the upcoming elections in November. I am overwhelmed by the enormity of it all, but try each day to focus on getting up and making the most of what I've been blessed to have and share the gifts I've been given. Big changes are coming, even though the slow tick tock of one day to the next seems small, all of a sudden with the small works and changes of many, it will be a New Season. Put one foot in front of the other, be patient and strong, forgiving and willing to learn a new way. Listen.
Summer for Deborah Bryant Handwoven will mean moving forward with online sales. Some of the artist organizations I'm involved with are trying out online formats for events and shows. We are meeting to learn and connect with Zoom. Shows are still canceled until late August, depending on how the virus is affecting us then. I am optimistically re-thinking my tent and display layout to create physical distancing from customers and put product on the outer front and sides for easy access. I will miss having close contact with my customers in demonstrating how to wear items. I can do hands free payment, and keep surfaces wiped down, and of course will wear a mask. I may even have a basket of handmade cloth masks available for sale.
The studio is still a place of solace and great inspiration for me to get through these difficult days. I am beyond fortunate to already work from home in this way and have a good supply of yarn and dye to keep producing new pieces. Check out my online shop as I add new work regularly. Stay Optimistic Folks, Wear a Mask and Wash Your Hands!