Burst My Bubble

The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that. Proverbs 29:25 (The Message)

So much for resolving to skip the crafts competition at the county fair. I decided it was not something that was that important to me, and I wouldn’t participate this year, but a couple of friends encouraged me to enter. They like my glass, and the people in charge have always been good about displaying my work under lights so it looked very pretty. But, my kiln has been broken for several months, and I gave away many pieces as gifts this year. I also have a lot of glass on consignment at a couple of local shops. As a result, I only had two pieces of glass created this year to enter, a large piece in a stand of two dolphins and the sunset and a bowl with three dolphins jumping over the moon. Yes, there is a theme going, I have found that tropical designs seem to sell better. Entering two pieces almost didn’t seem like it was worth the trouble to fill out the entry form and stand in line to deliver them, so I started thinking about what else I could do. I found three photographs to enter into the photography competition, but you can enter ten items and that only made five. What other things could I come up with? Then, I decided to make some scarves so yesterday, I went into a felt making mania. Using an instruction book, I made five scarves yesterday. I dyed a piece of wool green and blue and turned it into a lacy collar that is a short neck warmer. The loops looked like leaves to me so I sewed some enameled flowers on to it that I made in the torch fired enamels class I took with Vicki last January. Then, I took a piece of lavender wool, felted it into a long scarf and sewed some enameled beads on it. I also made a hot pink colored “bubble boa.” I felted a long piece of wool into a scarf, then, using over a hundred marbles, I wrapped the fabric around the marbles attaching them with tiny rubber bands. After sitting in hot water for 45 minutes, the wool took on the shape of the individual marbles. Even after I took the marbles out, the fabric looks like it is covered in bubbles. I really think that one turned out cute, but no one will understand how much time it took to tie all those marbles into the wool or take them out once it was set! I know compared to the flashy glass that I usually enter, the little scarves will likely not catch anyone’s eye. Still, I had fun making them, and I think that is what really matters. The praise of others used to be what motivated me. Maybe its age, maybe perspective, maybe it’s realizing that there is only One whose opinion really matters. If I don’t get a blue ribbon, it won’t burst my bubble. I’ll just wear them around my neck.