Since Christmas, I have been taking reclaimed wood, cleaning it and giving it a new purpose. I've never thought of myself as being crafty or creative. I've always seen people turn nothing into something and I've been amazed by it. Then, my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas last year. I genuinely couldn't think of anything, other than a tattoo. If you have people that are helping you survive life, my feeling is that you shouldn't be putting your money into anything like that. HOWEVER, if it's a gift, that's different! 😂 I still have a 5 hour gift certificate that I need to cash in though so there's really no need for that. I had to think about it. I'm a budget friendly person, so nothing came to mind. I knew what my mom's income was and I happen to have six of her ten grandchildren, so, I knew how far that had to stretch. Then, she asked me the magic question. "If money were no object, what would..." I blurted out, "A Dremel!" She said, A Dremel? Really??"
I imagine that she was a tad bit shocked because she knew that I don't ever put myself out there to be crafty. I can find the best deals, coupons and tell you the best ways to save some money. I can throw a meal together that doesn't have a name to it but what on earth would I do with a Dremel?! Well, my desire was to make my daughter a graduation yard sign. I showed her what Jachelle wanted and then, I showed her a Google slide of what I pictured in my head. When I made the slide, I wasn't thinking of doing it myself. I made it to see how much I could cram onto one of those signs. I thought about my yard, placement and if it would really even be seen. My stepdad had given me some old pallet wood the year before and I thought I could do a sign out of it. Long story short, every time someone asked me after that what I wanted, I answered, "Either a Home Depot gift card or Harbor Freight gift card". I really wanted to be able to see if I could turn trash into treasure but it was more important to me that my children had what they needed first, some things that they wanted second, things I needed third and my wants last.
Christmas gets here and I have a Dremel, a $200 gift card for Home Depot and a $150 gift card for Harbor Freight. I immediately went to looking for deals and the predictions of upcoming sales. I waited a couple weeks for the best time and I bought myself a table saw with one gift card and a miter saw with the other. Next thing I know, my YouTube feed is full of woodworking videos. I spent January to May making Jachelle's graduation sign, which hangs on a 8' x 8' frame.
During the process of making her sign, I had scraps of wood that I wasn't using yet but had ideas for. On rainy days, when I couldn't cut, I pieced things together or the kids and I painted on scraps. Some visions, I would have to explain to them and they would bring it to life. The cutting and building of the pieces has been done by me but 99% of the artwork has been done by them. When I tell people that it's reclaimed wood, they're surprised. I see the same look on their face that I KNOW that I have given to my sister when she refurbishes a piece of furniture that she got in someone's trash.
It makes me think about how we allow the things that have happened to us in life, to make us feel like we belong on the curb with the trash. We allow the things that we've done, the things that people say to us, even the things that we say to ourselves, to make us feel like we belong in the trash pile. Sometimes, we help others feel like trash so that we aren't going in the dumpster alone. Or, we even make others feel like they are more trash than we are because they were in a different dumpster longer than we were. I've certainly been guilty of that!
When I finally allowed the Lord to make me knew, it's been my desire to help others to know that they can be made new, as well. I always loved the term, "beautiful mess" because that's exactly what we are. We are an absolute MESS but God makes us BEAUTIFUL. He, quite literally, turns trash into treasure.
While studying the scriptures and looking up verses, I ran across the page below and was intrigued by the title of her blog, "7 Powerful Bible Verses About a New Beginning". Especially, because it was after I wrote mine above. I didn't feel right about referencing those verses without referencing the page.
Some of our creations... Some are finished and some aren't. Some were gifts and some, we're using for an upcoming fundraiser. We hope you like what you see, but more importantly, we hope that you know that the Lord loves you, even if you're sitting on the curb.
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